The wives of the oligarchs are very different: among them there are successful businesswoman and socialite, mothers of many children and adventurers, loyal friends and obvious materialists. Not all of them are known to the general public; many spouses of millionaires prefer to carefully protect their personal lives.
Irina Viner
Wife of billionaire Alisher Usmanov, who owns the Metallinvest holding. Unlike many oligarchs' wives, he does not hide in the shadow of her husband. Viner is the creator of the Russian school of rhythmic gymnastics, coach and mentor of Olympic champions and winners of the most prestigious international competitions.
In her youth, Irina herself was engaged in rhythmic gymnastics, three times became the champion of Uzbekistan. She graduated from the Institute of Physical Education in Tashkent, got married, gave birth to a son, Anton, but divorced a few years later.
Irina met Alisher Usmanov for a long time, but the official marriage was concluded only in 1992. Irina moved to Moscow and received the post of head coach at the Olympic training center. She defended her thesis, is a doctor of pedagogical sciences, has many government awards. Wiener herself says that she is a real "oriental wife", puts her husband's interests first and tries not to bother him over trifles. But if necessary, he will immediately be there and support in difficult times.
Polina Deripaska
Polina's maiden name is Yumasheva. She was born in the first marriage of Valentin Yumashev, the future husband of Boris Yeltsin's daughter Tatyana Dyachenko. She studied in Great Britain at the Milford School, returning to Russia, graduated from the Faculty of Economics of Moscow State University and the Higher School of Business at Moscow State University. In her student years, she played tennis and even was part of the youth team.
In 2001, she married the aluminum king Oleg Deripaska, a son and a daughter were born in the marriage. He is engaged in the publishing business, heading the board of directors of the Forward Media Group publishing house owned by Deripaska.
Leads a not too public lifestyle, preferring business meetings to secular parties, devotes a lot of time to raising children. In 2019, she unexpectedly announced a divorce from the oligarch. It turned out that the couple had been living apart for almost a year. The divorce was peaceful, apparently, Deripaska and his ex-wife have no claims to each other.
Elena Likhach
The wife of Andrei Skoch, a State Duma deputy, co-owner of Gazmetal and Metallinvest, one of the richest businessmen in Russia. The secular lioness hails from Belarus, behind her shoulders an unsuccessful marriage, from which she left a daughter. The girl met Andrei about 15 years ago, but the wedding took place only in 2011. For several years, three children were born in the family; in the near future, another heir is expected to appear.
Despite the presence of kids in the house. Elena does not plan to lead a secluded life. She often attends social gatherings and various protocol events, invariably surprising the audience with a slender figure and a dazzling smile. The billionaire's wife tried herself as a denim fashion designer. But the attempt turned out to be a failure, the idea of their own business has been postponed for the time being. Today Elena divides time between home and social events, often travels to Sardinia, where the family has their own villa. He is a regular at high-profile foreign events, for example, the Cannes Film Festival.
Ekaterina Potanina
The second wife of the richest co-owner of Norilsk Nickel, a former ordinary employee of his company. Catherine became the reason for the loud and scandalous divorce of the oligarch from his first wife Natalia, with whom he lived for more than 30 years. The details of a long legal battle with the division of jointly acquired property were discussed for a long time in the media, both sides were extremely hostile to each other.
Catherine's romance with her future husband, who at that time lived in an outwardly quite prosperous marriage, lasted for several years. The birth of an illegitimate daughter became an unpleasant surprise for the legal wife and a reason for divorce. While the courts were dragging on, Catherine gave birth to another child. The marriage with his new wife was formalized in 2014. Soon after the wedding, the couple began to go out, causing a real stir in the tabloids and a new round of discussions about all the circumstances of the first divorce.
Catherine is 14 years younger than her husband; little is known about her past. Potanin's wife does not lead a very public lifestyle, of interest to journalists only in the context of the scandalous divorce of her husband from her predecessor.
Lyudmila Lisina
Wife of Vladimir Lisin, chairman of the board of directors of Novolipetsk Iron and Steel Works. The future billionaire and his wife met at school, finding themselves at the same desk. The wayward girl did not like the persistent admirer at first, but later he managed to win her favor. Vladimir always emphasized that it was Lyudmila who instilled in him a love of art. She managed to build a strong family rear for her husband, helping him to calmly and quite successfully make a career. At one time, Mrs. Lisina had to completely immerse herself in household chores and the upbringing of three sons.
When the children grew up, Lyudmila was able to concentrate on her favorite pastime. She loves art and owns a private art gallery on Sretensky Boulevard. The woman still devotes all her free time to her family. Not surprisingly, Starhit magazine included her in the top list of exemplary wives who consistently support their husbands.
