'Showing off old vigor?'… 71-year-old Putin takes ice water plunge again this year in subzero weather

Russian Orthodox Church Annual Ceremony Held

Vladimir Putin, the Russian president known for emphasizing a masculine image, immersed himself in icy water on the 19th (local time) at the age of 71, braving subzero temperatures. This was to participate in the annual Russian Orthodox Church ritual.

2021 Epiphany Ice Water Event of Putin [Photo by EPA Yonhap News]

Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesperson, claimed in the early morning that President Putin followed the Orthodox Epiphany tradition by immersing himself in an ice hole. However, he did not disclose where Putin participated in the event.

In the Orthodox Church, January 19th every year is Epiphany, commemorating the baptism of baby Jesus. Orthodox believers celebrate this by washing their hands with holy water in churches from the eve of the Epiphany feast day or by breaking the ice on rivers or reservoirs to bathe in the cold water. On this day in Russia, despite the cold weather with temperatures dropping to minus 5 degrees Celsius in the capital Moscow, many celebrities and others entered the icy water, and videos of this were shared on social media (SNS).

President Putin has been showcasing his vitality by bathing in icy water for several years.

Image source=Yonhap News

Putin has been keen on displaying his masculinity. He has publicly shared photos of himself hunting or holding a gun, piloting a submarine deep underwater, or engaging in sports like judo. In 2009, a photo of President Putin shirtless while riding a horse during a vacation in southern Siberia became a sensation.

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

In January last year, after a roughly one-hour dialogue with students from Moscow State University, a commemorative photo captured his high heels on camera. Foreign media immediately mocked him. The British Daily Mail reported on the 26th, "Putin, who is 170 cm tall and obsessed with his image, wore high heels to take a photo with Moscow students." The article pointed out that President Putin has been obsessed with his macho image and has strictly controlled it since coming to power in 1999. Metro mocked, "The Kremlin leader wore shoes with 'extra-large heels' to pose with young people," adding, "Putin has been spotted wearing such heels for years, but this photo appears to show the largest ones yet."

In 2022, G7 leaders joked about Putin, saying they needed to decide what to wear for a group photo: "Should we wear jackets? Should we take them off? Should we go shirtless? We need to show that we are stronger than Putin," and "He should at least go shirtless and do some horseback riding."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.