Is Valentina Shevchenko Russian? Parents, Ethnicity, Religion: All About UFC Star’s Personal Life

Valentina Shevchenko is probably one of the most prolific fighters in UFC women’s MMA. With a record of 23 victories and 4 defeats, Shevchenko has only lost to Alexa Grasso since 2018. The former flyweight champion has an interesting story when it comes to her background. ‘Bullet comes from a family of warriors but which country does she represent when she is fighting? Well, that’s a question that has been asked by the fans since the day she donned two flags.

Valentina Shevchenko has often carried the flags of two countries stitched together to showcase their love for both. Most fans might be aware of the fact that ‘Bullet’ is a native of Kyrgyzstan, but she moved to Peru in order to upgrade her martial arts skills. However, in a 2020 episode of the ‘Hablemos MMA Podcast’, Shevchenko stated, “I’m from Kyrgyzstan, but my nationality is Russian”. These words from ‘the Kyrgyzstani’ might still have many wondering what exactly was the reason behind ‘Bullet’s statement. Let’s find out.

What is Valentina Shevchenko’s ethnicity and nationality?

The first part of this question can be answered affirmatively with the information we have currently. As already mentioned, ‘Bullet’ herself stated her “nationality” to be “Russian” on the noted podcast. But she also backs a few points to legitimize her self-proclaimed “Russian” identity.

Shevchenko revealed, “In the Soviet Union, when there was a Soviet Union like 15 countries, a lot of people from Russia were sent to countries like Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, to develop the culture and my grandmother was one of them.” She continued, “She met my grandfather, my mother was born, and we grew up in Kyrgyzstan, but from an ethnicity standpoint were Russian.”

Despite Shevchenko’s clarification about the Russian part of her identity, we can only make assumptions about how she is connected to Ukraine. She never mentioned the ethnicity of her grandfather in the podcast. Shevchenko was born in Frunze, Kirghiz SSR, Soviet Union on March 7, 1988, to a Russian-Ukrainian family of military servicemen. And despite her diverse ethnicity, Valentina Shevchenko spent eight long years of her life in the Latin American nation of Peru. So, how did she end up in Peru?

Well, Shevchenko and her coach were there for a few months but the warmth of the people made her stay and give specialized Muay Thai classes across the entire Latin America region.

It must be noted that she represents herself as a Peruvian as well by carrying its flag along with the Kyrgyzstani flag. However, multiple reports say that she has chosen the UFC’s hometown, Las Vegas, as her current residence. Now that we know about her, Let’s have a look at her parents.

All we know about Valentina Shevchenko’s parents

Reports say that Valentina is the second daughter of Elena and Anatoly Shevchenko. She was born in Kyrgyzstan, which used to be under Soviet control in those days. Several publications also say that one of her parents carries Russian roots while the other is of Ukrainian origin.

V͏ale͏nt͏ina͏ S͏h͏ev͏ch͏enk͏o’s ͏mother, Elena͏͏ S͏hev͏chenko͏, is͏ a͏ ͏r͏en͏owned for͏mer Muay ͏Thai ch͏a͏mp͏͏͏ion a͏nd curren͏͏tly͏ s͏e͏rves as ͏͏͏t͏h͏e presi͏dent of͏͏ K͏͏yrgyzstan’s͏ ͏n͏͏a͏t͏͏͏ional Muay͏͏ Tha͏i orga͏n͏izat͏ion. H͏͏er fat͏her, Ana͏to͏ly Shev͏chen͏ko,͏ ha͏d a͏ ͏d͏͏is͏t͏i͏n͏guis͏͏hed caree͏͏r͏, havi͏ng͏ s͏erv͏ed͏ in the Soviet Na͏v͏y’s Pa͏cif͏ic͏ Fleet͏ ͏͏͏du͏ri͏ng͏ the Cold͏͏ War, and͏ al͏so ͏played͏ foot͏ba͏ll͏ f͏or th͏͏e Kyr͏gyz͏stan nation͏a͏l ͏͏tea͏m͏.

What religion does Valentina Shevchenko follow?

Well, most fans might have never seen ‘Bullet’ talk about religious preferences. Apart from fans, there are no publications that can confirm this as well. Hence, all we can do is make assumptions from a few known factors. History says that her surname, Shevchenko’ is mostly carried by Christians and Valentine Shevchenko is Christian as well. She actively visits the Church.

However, some of the fans believe that she is Muslim. There’s an unconfirmed piece of information about her that has often been heard in the UFC world. It says Shevchenko is actually married to his longtime coach, Pavel Fedotov. Now Fedotov is a Muslim but is much older than him. Hence, the believers in this rumor might be the ones who identify her as a Muslim. But she has also posted several snaps on her Instagram that showcase her respect for Buddhism as well.