Wed, 01/12/2011 – 23:56 – PokerPages Staff

#5 – Vadim Markushevski
In at number five is a young economics graduate from Belarus.  A televised show of the European Poker Tour in 2009 set his poker juices flowing, and Vadim Markushevski has been playing very ably ever since.  He’s now a Team PokerStars Sponsored Pro and has earned a total of $94,712 in poker winnings.

#4 – Max Lykov
With $916,969 in total poker winnings to his name so far, Max Lykov steals our number four slot. He’s had a fabulous two-year run on the international tournament poker circuit, winning $70,000 at Egypt’s Red Sea Poker Cup in 2009 and his biggest single win to date – $473,390 – when he finished first at the PokerStars Kyiv Sports Poker Championship of the 2009 European Poker Tour.  He, too, is now a Team PokerStars Sponsored Pro.

#3 – Alexander Kravchenko
Bounding energetically into the third place is another Team PokerStars Sponsored Pro – 36-year-old Moscow-based businessman, Alexander Kravchenko.  He’s the very first Russian player to have won a WSOP bracelet, and has amassed a tidy poker fortune of $3,415,740.

#2 – Vitaliy Lunkin
Our runner up is another poker master from Moscow.  38-year-old business manager Vitaliy Lunkin has two WSOP bracelets to his name and $4,075,829 in total poker winnings.  His most spectacular win to date was at the 40th WSOP No Limit Hold’em Event, when he finished first and took down a prize pot of $1, 891,012.

#1 – Ivan Demidov
Seizing our first place by a mile is another youthful Muscovite, 27-year-old Team PokerStars Sponsored Pro Ivan Demidov.  After a scintillating performance at the 2008 WSOP No Limit Hold’em Championship, he finished second and returned to Moscow $5,780,024 richer.  His total poker winnings presently amount to $6,672,412 – not bad for a guy who only started playing in 2006.