Putin's alleged grandson takes mother's name to avoid 'Zelensky' surname

The dancer shares a surname with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky but is not related to him. Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

A son reportedly born to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s daughter Katerina Tikhonova was registered under his mother’s surname rather than that of his presumed father, ballet dancer Igor Zelensky, according to Russian investigative outlet Agentstvo.

The dancer shares a surname with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky but is not related to him. Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Agentstvo based its report on leaked civil registry records, according to Meduza, an independent Russian-language news outlet. The records indicated that Tikhonova had a son in 2025 and that his birth was registered nearly a year later. Meduza described Igor Zelensky as the presumed father.

The boy was registered with the masculine form of his mother’s surname, Tikhonov. His patronymic, a name derived from a father’s first name, was also included in the records cited by the outlets.

The Daily Mail reported that the child was given his mother’s surname to avoid the association with Ukraine’s president. The underlying reporting, however, does not establish why the name was chosen or that anyone barred the use of Zelensky. The reason for the reported delay in registration is also unknown.

Ballet dancer, Putin's daughter in long-term relationship, investigation reveals

Earlier reporting linked Tikhonova to the dancer. In 2022, an investigation by Russian outlet iStories and Germany’s Der Spiegel found evidence that the two were in a long-term relationship and appeared to have a child together, the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project reported.

Igor Zelensky previously led the Bavarian State Ballet in Munich. The Guardian also reported on the investigation at the time, noting that he was unrelated to the Ukrainian president.

Putin has kept details of his family largely out of public view. The latest account of the child’s birth and registration rests on the records cited by Agentstvo; the other outlets’ reports do not independently verify them.