It sounds like either an April Fool’s joke or the most unlikely love match of the year.
But according to a report in an American magazine, Wendi Deng may be dating Vladimir Putin.
The article in Us Weekly quoted an ‘insider’ claiming that the relationship between the ex-wife of media tycoon Rupert Murdoch and the President of Russia was "serious".
It went on to insist that the rumour had been "circulating around the corridors of power – from Washington DC to Europe and Asia".
Earlier this week, when she was in St Barts on holiday with her family, Deng was pictured on a yacht belonging to Chelsea FC owner Roman Abramovich.
Deng, 47, is close friends with Abramovich’s partner Dasha Zhukova. And Abramovich himself is said to be close to 63-year-old Putin.
But the magazine’s report came despite the fact that Putin and Deng have never been seen or pictured together in public.
Murdoch married Deng in 1999, and the couple had two daughters together. The newspaper owner decided to file for divorce in 2013.
He went on to marry 59-year-old ex-model Jerry Hall last month.
But at the time of his divorce with Deng, reports suggested that he had grown suspicious of his wife’s close relationship with Tony Blair, the godfather to one of their daughters – a claim that Blair had denied.
Meanwhile Putin was married to Lyudmila Putina for 30 years, with whom he had two daughters before the pair divorced in 2014.
He has since been linked to the Russian gymnast Alina Kabaeva, with some reports even claiming that she has given birth to his child in secret.
The Us Weekly story about Deng and Putin was written by Sierra Marquina, who is the magazine’s West Coast editor.
According to her online profile, her previous stories include: ‘Halle Berry joins Twitter and Instagram, shares topless photo.’
The writer’s latest piece about Deng and Putin claimed rumours about them had been "floating about for years" since their respective divorces.
After the story was published Michael Wolff, a US journalist who has written extensively about Murdoch, tweeted: "I always said Wendi was the better story".
And on Thursday editors at Us Weekly insisted that they were standing by their report. However the Kremlin has yet to comment on the claims.
Last night Deng was not available for comment.