An Olympic rhythmic gymnastics champion, rumoured to be Russian President Vladimir Putin’s lover, has been appointed the head of a powerful pro-Kremlin media group.

Alina Kabayeva, 31, announced on Monday that she was standing down early after seven years as an lawmaker for the ruling United Russia party, without saying why.

“Alina Maratovna has accepted the offer of our shareholders to chair the board of directors,” National Media Group’s spokeswoman Oksana Razumova told AFP using Kabayeva’s patronymic.

National Media Group (NMG) was created in a 2008 merger that included the holdings of businessman Yury Kovalchuk, who is also chairman of Bank Rossiya.

The bank was hit by the first wave of Western sanctions over Russia’s annexation of Crimea and both the European Union and the United States have slapped asset freezes and travel bans on Kovalchuk.