Prominent pro-Putin ballet star Sergei Polunin has announced he is leaving Russia

Moscow Former Royal Ballet star Sergei Polunin, famous for his tattoo of Russian President Vladimir Putin, announced on Wednesday that he intends to leave Russia. The Ukrainian-Russian dancer was one of the most prominent stars who supported Russia Unilateral annexation of Crimea in 2014 And its military attack on Ukraine. He was rewarded with prestigious government positions.

In rambling, misspelling A message on his Instagram account “My time in Russia has long ended, and at this moment it seems that I have fulfilled my mission here,” Polunin wrote.

The post first appeared on Sunday on his little-read Telegram account.

Polunin (35 years old) did not give a specific reason for leaving, but he said: “Thank you for everything Russia has done for me. The time comes and the soul feels that it is not where it should be.”

He said he would leave with his family, consisting of his wife Jelena and three children, but “where we will go is not yet clear.”

In the summer, the dancer complained of lack of security and said that he was being monitored.

Polunin, who was born in Ukraine, supported Putin’s annexation of Crimea in 2014, a precursor to the ongoing campaign against Russia. Large-scale invasion of Ukraine Launched by Putin in February 2022.

The dancer obtained Russian citizenship in 2019. He was appointed acting president of the Academy of Dance in Sevastopol, the largest city in occupied Crimea, and director of the city’s Opera and Ballet Theater, for which a large new building is being constructed.

Just last year, he received a medal from Putin for his role in popularizing dance. But in August, he was replaced as head of the dance academy by former Bolshoi star Maria Alexandrova, and a week ago, Russian Arts Minister Olga Lyubimova announced that his job as theater director would go to singer Eldar Abdrazakov.

This came after Polunin published an article on December 9 Social media sharing He expressed his “deep regret for the people” living in the village that was subjected to heavy bombing near the Ukrainian city of Kherson, “where a generation of Polonians grew up and my Russian grandfather built a small house with his own hands.”

He urged Putin to negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine, saying: “Even the worst agreement would be better than war.”

“I hope that the humanity of the Russian president will be fulfilled, and if there is the possibility of a normal professional conversation with Trump,” Polunin wrote at the time. “You’d better show your willpower and good nature and start negotiations.”

At the age of 13, Polunin won a scholarship to train at the Royal Ballet School in London and became the youngest principal dancer ever.

Thanks to his tattoos — including a large drawing of Putin’s face prominently emblazoned on his chest — and his rebellious attitude, he became known as “the bad boy of ballet” and caused a sensation by resigning from the Royal Ballet at the height of his fame in 2012.

Later he made a hit video in 2015 for the Irish musician Hozier’s song “Take Me to Church” He was the star of a 2016 documentary called “The Dancer.”

He moved on to perform ballets at the Stanislavsky Music Theater in Moscow before beginning a solo career, starring in dance productions in roles including the mystic Grigori Rasputin.

In 2019, he appeared before AFP with a large tattoo of Putin on his chest, to which he later added two faces of Putin on both shoulders. He also has a large Ukrainian trident in his right hand.

This year he participated Putin’s re-election campaign As a celebrity endorser.