Viktoria Korchagina is a case in point. On the face of it, it seems hard to believe that this slim, fair-haired woman could possibly work as a professional bodyguard, as she casually sips a cup of green tea in a downtown Saint Petersburg cafe.

Yet, this 40-something mother of three sons, who heads the northwestern chapter of Russia's National Bodyguards Association, has been doing just that for almost 10 years.

While, according to experts, women represent no more than seven percent of all Russian bodyguards, male clients hiring them know exactly what they want, and strictly professional criteria usually do not rank first in their priorities, says Korchagina, who holds a degree in physical education.

"When a Russian man hires a woman as his bodyguard, the first thing he looks at is her physique, and, usually, he will prefer a blonde," Korchagina says.

"In our line of work, a masculine, rough looking woman will have a hard time finding a job," she adds.

Entrepreneurs doing deals in post-Soviet Russia make a wide use of bodyguards, who, in Saint Petersburg, are usually paid between $600 and $2500 dollars a month (€500 and €2087), as contract killings of businessmen are far from unheard of, particularly in Russia's second city, often dubbed the country's crime capital.

However, in addition to businessmen facing real danger, others hire bodyguards simply to enhance their social status, or to impress business relations, Korchagina says.

And some men simply prefer spending their time in the company of pretty women, as opposed to hulking men, she says, adding that at first, this sometimes creates problems with her clients' wives.

"My clients' wives are often jealous, but then they realise I have no romantic interest in their husbands, and I can work normally," Korchagina says, adding that she sometimes also works for women, including Sarah Ferguson, Britain's Duchess of York, whom she protected during her 1998 visit to Saint Petersburg.

In other cases, Russian businessmen may feel they need to hire protection for their families, and sometimes prefer to have women watch over their children and wives.

Such is the case of Alexei, a businessmen who two years ago hired a female bodyguard for his wife. "I was going through a delicate phase in my business and I wanted to protect my wife, but I did not want a man to be with her every day," Alexei says.

"At first, relations between my wife and her female bodyguard were a little tense, but they rapidly improved," he adds.

But even for his wife, Alexei seems to have insisted on hiring a female bodyguard with good looks, describing her as "Svetlana, a rather pretty woman."

AFP