Vladimir Putin, the king of judo

In times past he has contrived to depict himself in a variety of macho guises – insatiable lady-killer, topless fisherman and fearless tiger hunter among them – but this, it seems, is not enough for Vladimir Putin (pictured). Now he has released a judo DVD which features him training with and throwing an Olympic Gold medalist in the sport.

Called Learning Judo with Vladimir Putin, it has been put out to mark the Russian Prime Minister's 56th birthday and like anything that comes out of the Kremlin it carries an underlying political message – that Putin gets his way not just by being tough and invincible, but by being 100-times smarter than his opponents on or off the mat. In the film's introduction, he says: "The name of the sport, 'the gentle way', reveals the fundamental principle: an opportunity to gain the upper hand by soft but effective actions."

Putin, who has already released a best-selling book on Judo tips, is a black belt at the sport and perhaps the only world leader as skilled at self-defence as his bodyguards. Less well known is that he is a former judo champion of his home city of St Petersburg – then Leningrad – where the video was released yesterday at a late-night presentation.

He told the gathering that the title of the film was an "advertising trick", adding that viewers would be "learning not from your humble servant but from real geniuses". The film was made in collaboration with Yashuhiro Yamashita, a Japanese world and Olympic champion in the sport.

But in the DVD Putin plays his action-man image to the hilt. Donning a white judo suit, he is seen executing several deadly moves and repeatedly throwing much bigger (and younger) opponents to the ground, one of whom is the great Yamashita. Later, dressed in a black robe and against a background of stirring music, he explains the history and philosophy behind judo, giving telling insights into his leadership style.

"Judo is a philosophy," Putin concludes, describing it as a world where "the highest values are not just physical power, but also human qualities".

One man likely to find the DVD in his stocking this Christmas is President Sarkozy. Putin told the Figaro last month that the French president had expressed an interest in judo and "we have decided to do some training together".

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