This man became famous not only thanks to his odious political ambitions, but also because of his non-trivial hobbies. He managed to repeatedly hold the highest position in the native republic of Kalmykia, and also excel in the field of entrepreneurship.
It seemed to many political scientists that Kirsan Ilyumzhinov was the “unsinkable” leader of the region, who under no circumstances would lose his authority. And, indeed, it is rare for anyone to have a mission - to occupy the governor’s chair more than three times in a row. But this is not the only difference between Kirsan Ilyumzhinov and his colleagues. He is also an ardent football fan, as well as an active promoter of the game of chess. In his homeland, he built a whole town where the Olympics are regularly held among those who like to practice abstruse combinations with the queen and the rook. And the president of Kalmykia became famous for the fact that one of the minor planets in the Galaxy was named in his honor. In addition, the politician speaks many languages, fluently speaking in English, Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Mongolian. How did the regular worker of the Zvezda factory manage to break into the power structures, and what was remarkable about Ilyumzhinov’s biography?
Let's consider this question in more detail.
Curriculum Vitae
Kirsan Ilyumzhinov is a native of the capital of Kalmykia (the city of Elista). He was born on April 5, 1962. His father was a representative of the local party elite, heading the department of industry and transport of the regional city committee of the CPSU, and his mother worked as a veterinarian. As a teenager, the future president of Kalmykia began to show interest in chess. Naturally, such a hobby, useful for intellectual development, positively influenced the boy's school performance. As a result, Kirsan’s matriculation certificate included only “fives”. Of course, the most promising prospects opened up for the young man.
After school
But he goes to work as a simple fitter - an installer for the Zvezda enterprise, and upon reaching adulthood he replenishes the ranks of the Armed Forces.
After serving in the army, the young man worked for a short time as a team leader at the Zvezda factory, but he soon realized that it was rather difficult to live without a higher education and submitted documents to MGIMO. As a result, he enters this prestigious university. But, as some sources testify, the biography of Ilyumzhinov at a young age is not without dark spots. In the last year at the institute, a young man was unexpectedly expelled. The reason for this turn of events was the denunciation of classmates, who accused Kirsan of leading an asocial lifestyle, spending free time in entertainment venues, abuse alcohol and even take drugs. Only a few months later Ilyumzhinov managed to recover at the university. In 1989, the future president of Kalmykia already has a diploma stating that he is an expert in Japan (culture, economics, language, history).
Start of business
One way or another, but after graduating from one of the most prestigious universities in the country, Kirsan did not begin to work by profession. The president of Kalmykia, who will later become Ilyumzhinov, decides to do business. In the late 80s, thanks to an impeccable knowledge of the Japanese language, he will lead one of the branches of the largest automotive corporation Mitsubishi. Each deal with a used car brought Ilyumzhinov a good percentage income, and after a while he began to expand the geography of his business, at the same time opening several large service stations.
Business goes uphill
Gradually, things in the entrepreneurial field at Ilyumzhinov began to take shape in the best way.
He became a member of the leadership of a number of banking institutions and commercial enterprises. The Russian press began to dazzle with headlines that, according to unconfirmed reports, a graduate of MGIMO “lent” 10 billion rubles from federal officials to purchase wool. As it turned out later, the money disappeared in an unknown direction. However, there are a lot of similar stories, in the center of which the head of Kalmykia was featured, but at the official level of evidence incriminating Ilyumzhinov in frauds was not obtained. It is noteworthy that a chess fan was always calm and inert about the attacks and accusations of journalists.
Political career
Back in 1983, Kirsan received a membership card, replenishing the immense ranks of the CPSU. At MGIMO, he was entrusted with the position of deputy secretary of the party committee on ideology. The party nominated the young man to the people's deputies of the RSFSR. Then Ilyumzhinov became a member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs and Foreign Economic Relations. In 1991, the future head of Kalmykia became a member of the Supreme Council of the RSFSR. At that time, a fateful acquaintance with Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin took place, which gave Kirsan a ticket to big politics. The first president of Russia very soon gained confidence in a young man from Elista.
Yeltsin was impressed by the fact that Ilyumzhinov never bothered him with problems, unlike his colleagues.
Management post
In 1993, Kirsan, enlisting the support of the labor collective of the Zvezda plant and the Alachinsky state farm, put forward his candidacy for the presidential elections in the Republic of Kalmykia. Then he won, securing 65.4% of the vote. Two years later, Ilyumzhinov will be prematurely re-elected to the presidency and will head the government of the Republic of Kalmykia for seven whole years. In autumn 2002, Kirsan will win the second round of elections for the head of the region. Three years later, Vladimir Putin, on his own initiative, will confirm Ilyumzhinov as president of Kalmykia. Thus, a “chess lover” headed his native region four times. In 2010, the politician said that he would not qualify for a fifth term, since he completely agreed with the course of Dmitry Medvedev, which is aimed at "rejuvenating personnel in the public administration system."
Presidential plans and endeavors
Having become the head of the region, Ilyumzhinov intended to build a number of industrial enterprises, but he built only one, which was profiled on the processing of sheep’s wool. But his brainchild did not work long. Kirsan decided to build windmills in Kalmykia in order to reduce the cost of electricity, but this project also failed. The head of the region decided to create a “software technology park” - a kind of analogue of Silicon Valley.
It was planned to prepare personnel in a small school located far from civilization. Again, the matter was not completed. Add to this the odious plans to turn Kalmykia into American Las Vegas and the Russian spaceport. In general, Ilyumzhinov has many ambitions, but in practice they were not destined to be realized by everyone.
