Russian World champion powerlifter Anna Turaeva, 42 (pictured left with her dog, right in the gym and top-inset in a park) has spoken of her horror after airport security asked her to prove she was a women after they saw her gender listed on her passport. She said she was initially barred from flying with Russian airline Utair from St Petersburg to her home city Krasnodar via Moscow, because the security staff believed her to be a man. She said that after calmly explaining to the officials, she was eventually permitted to board, but has since struck out at the airline for how they treated her. The sportswoman has a string of records and medals representing her country, and is one of Russia's most famous powerlifters.