The Vladimir Putin ally who secretly bankrolled much of Donald Trump Jr.’s Bahamas wedding had apparently met him only once in public — at an event where they bonded over a MAGA outrage.
In what appears to be the only recorded meeting between Trump Jr. and Russian oligarch Umar Kremlev, Trump Jr. ranted about men taking part in women’s sports — and cited a scandal from the 2024 Olympics that had been soundly debunked.
Trump shared the stage with Kremlev at an Istanbul conference held by the disgraced boxing organization the International Boxing Association — of which Kremlev is president — in September 2025.
The event was celebrated in a press release from the IBA — an organization that the International Olympic Committee refuses to recognize because of concerns over financial transparency, ethical governance, and the integrity of refereeing and judging.
Despite this, Trump Jr. said at the event, “I am proud to call Umar not only a leader but a friend.”
Trump Jr. — who has no official connection to boxing and was introduced as the executive vice president of The Trump Organization — admitted he was a misfit at the event, saying, “I probably don’t belong to this incredible family of champions and legends.”
He then launched into a criticism aimed at Olympic boxers that the outraged right-wing claimed had been allowed to compete against women despite being genetically men.
“What I saw at the last Olympic Games was truly sad, especially as the father of a young female athlete. The fairness of sport matters. My daughter has dedicated her life to excellence, and to see those values undermined is unacceptable.
“What Umar is doing — restoring actual fairness, bringing back the purity of boxing and giving the youth of today a chance to step away from the computer and into the ring — is extraordinary.”
Kremlev’s IBA had disqualified Lin Yu-ting, from Chinese Taipei, and Imane Khelif, from Algeria, from its 2023 World Championships over gender-testing issues, though it published no legal medical evidence.
The two, however, went on to win gold medals in the Paris 2024 Olympics after the IOC refused to recognize the IBA’s tests. The issues became a major flashpoint, with President Donald Trump claiming the athletes had “transitioned” from men.
Both boxers are women who were never transgender.
No connection between Trump Jr. and Kremlev was documented after that meeting until a Monday report from ProPublica revealed that the Russian quietly rented a private island in the Bahamas for Trump Jr.’s extravagant wedding to Palm Beach socialite Bettina Anderson in May, covered the cost of a massive firework display, and had members of his team assist with planning.
The funds reportedly moved through a Dubai-based entity tied to the IBA — and prompted a ferocious outcry over potential corruption.
Kremlev, who was born Umar Lutfulloyev and has a criminal record for extortion and battery, was a leader in a Russian government-backed biker gang called the Night Wolves, a role in which he reportedly connected with Alexei Rubezhnoi, who leads Putin's presidential security service. In 2017, Rubezhnoi personally intervened to install Kremlev at the head of the Russian Boxing Federation, ProPublica reported.
In 2020, Kremlev became president of the IBA and brought in tens of millions of dollars in financing from Gazprom, the Russian state-owned energy giant, according to the report. A former high-level IBA official told ProPublica that Kremlev was "guided by Putin" and was using the sport for political influence.
Photos show Putin and Kremlev together at events, including a 2022 martial arts gathering in Moscow. Putin awarded him Russia's Order of Friendship, a state honor, in the months before Trump Jr.'s wedding.
