Speculation that Vladimir Putin may have had cosmetic surgery has resurfaced as he prepares to assume the Russian presidency for the third time.
The 58-year-old Russian prime minister set the blogosphere alight at the weekend after accepting his party's presidentialnomination at a glitzy Moscow event with his face looking suspiciously smooth.
The skin around his eyes was almost totally clear of bags and wrinkles, triggering a fresh wave of speculation that he has had a series of cosmetic procedures to keep his face looking youthful.
Set to turn 59 next month, Mr Putin prides himself on his image as a Judo-loving energetic action man who is in ideal shape to lead the world's largest country.
But his critics say he risks turning into a parody of Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev who ruled the USSR from 1964 until his death in 1982. Mr Putin is well placed to serve two back-to-back presidential terms that would keep him in power until 2024 at which point he would be 71.
Speculation that he has cosmetically altered his face first surfaced in October 2010 after he appeared at a press conference in Ukraine wearing heavy make up with a dark patch that looked like severe bruising around his left eye. His spokesman said the incident was a misunderstanding, claiming the light had fallen awkwardly and that Mr Putin was simply tired because he had been "working a great deal."
Earlier this month, Russia's liberal New Times magazine revived that speculation, publishing an article entitled "What has happened with Putin's face?" It interviewed four leading plastic surgeons who concluded that it was likely he had undergone cosmetic surgery. The magazine said he had probably had Botox injected into his forehead, an eye-lift on his lower lids, and an injection of firming filler into his famous cheek bones.


据英国《每日电讯报》9月26日报道，在普京打算第三次竞选俄罗斯总统之际，关于他可能进行过整容手术的猜测又一次浮出水面。

这位五十八岁的俄罗斯总理上周末在莫斯科接受统一俄罗斯党总统候选人提名时，皮肤看起来不可思议地平滑，这一现象立马在博客引起热议。

他眼部周围的皮肤几乎完全没有眼袋和细纹，从而引发了新一轮的猜测，人们怀疑他进行了一系列整容手术以使他的脸看起来总是那么年轻。

下个月就要59岁的普京，对自己的形象深感自豪，他爱好柔道充满活力，并以这种理想状态来领导这个世界上最大的国家。

但是他的批评者认为普京是在拙劣地模仿从1964年直到1982年去世一直统治前苏联的领导人勃列日涅夫。普京已经为连续两次的总统任期做好准备，这样就能使他一直当权到2024年，那时他将71岁。

关于普京整容的传闻第一次出现是在2010年10月，当时他出席在乌克兰的一次新闻发布会，化着厚重的妆来遮掩暗斑，左眼周围看上去有严重的淤青。普京的发言人声称那次事件是个误会，只是现场灯光太暗，普京又工作繁重太过疲劳所致。



本月早些时候，俄罗斯《新时代》杂志再次炒作这则新闻，并发表了一篇题为"普京的脸怎么了？"的文章。文章采访了四名业内领先的整形外科医生，他们都认为普京可能进行了整容手术。该杂志声称他可能给自己的前额注射了肉毒杆菌，进行了眼袋切除，并且给他著名的面颊骨注射了紧肤剂。

• minister [´ministə] n.部长；大臣 v.伺候 (初中英语单词)
• alight [ə´lait] a.燃着的 vi.下；降落 (初中英语单词)
• presidential [,prezi´denʃəl] a.总统的；统辖的 (初中英语单词)
• moscow [´mɔskəu] n.莫斯科 (初中英语单词)
• series [´siəri:z] n.连续；系列；丛书 (初中英语单词)
• soviet [´səuviit] a.苏联的 n.苏维埃 (初中英语单词)
• conference [´kɔnfərəns] n.讨论(会)；会谈 (初中英语单词)
• severe [si´viə] a.严厉的；苛刻的 (初中英语单词)
• incident [´insidənt] n.小事件；事变 (初中英语单词)
• liberal [´libərəl] a.大方的 n.开明的人 (初中英语单词)
• forehead [´fɔrid] n.额，前部 (初中英语单词)
• speculation [,spekju´leiʃən] n.思索，推测；投机 (高中英语单词)
• presidency [´prezidənsi] n.总统的职位(任期) (高中英语单词)
• nomination [,nɔmi´neiʃən] n.提名(权)；任命(权) (高中英语单词)
• surgery [´sə:dʒəri] n.外科；外科手术 (英语四级单词)
• weekend [´wi:kend, ,wi:k´end] n.周末休假 (英语四级单词)
• totally [´təutəli] ad.统统，完全 (英语四级单词)
• energetic [,enə´dʒetik] a.精力旺盛的；有力的 (英语四级单词)
• awkwardly [´ɔ:kwədli] a.笨拙地；棘手地 (英语四级单词)
• spokesman [´spəuksmən] n.发言人 (英语六级单词)
• misunderstanding [,misʌndə´stændiŋ] n.误解；隔阂 (英语六级单词)
• undergone [,ʌndə´gɔn] undergo的过去分词 (英语六级单词)