What Is It About Russian Bodybuilders? (100 Photos)

There are sure a lot of bodybuilders in Russia. Maybe they are taking cues from President Vladimir Putin and his well-known shirtless shots. It does seem ironic that in a country that can be so homophobic there are so many young men practically flaunting their near-naked bodies at eacho other. But all the better for photographer Andrei Vishnyakov.

Vishnyakov lives and works in St. Petersburg, Russia. His specialty is photographing young athletes -- both men and women -- at the peak of their conditioning. Luckily we have been able to include casual shots from the studio that illustrate the happy-go-lucky attitude of these competitors as well as Andrei's great sense of humor.

You can see more of Andrei's work on his website, Facebook, and Instagram. And Andrei is always adding new images because there are a lot of bodybuilders in Russia.