MOSCOW, January 18- RAPSI. Bolshoi Theater Artistic Director Sergei Filin suffered third degree burns to his face and eyes early Friday morning when an unknown assailant attacked him with what is believed to have been concentrated acid, according to Bolshoi Theater Press Secretary Yekaterina Novikova.

An unidentified person threw what is believed to be acid into the face of Sergei Filin, artistic director of the Bolshoi Theater, last night, said Yekaterina Novikova, the theater's press secretary.

He was attacked while entering his home around midnight in Moscow.

The spokesperson said that Mr. Filin had received threats before and someone had "punctured his car tires and hacked his website."

Sergei Filin has been admitted to the hospital with severe burns. The doctors say his current condition is satisfactory, but he will need a long time to recover.
A motive for the attack has not yet been established.

"The case of the attack against a Bolshoi Theater manager has been opened under the [Criminal Code] article on acts intended to cause grievous bodily harm," a press representative of the Moscow police told RIA Novosti.

Police are investigating the attack, and have said that, if convicted, the assailant could face up to eight years in jail for inflicting willful damage to health.
The investigators have no suspects so far.

Sergei Filin, 42, joined the Bolshoi as a dancer in 1988 after graduating from the Moscow School of Choreography.

He has also been invited on several occasions to dance with the English, Hungarian and Japanese national ballets, as well as at many other theaters. Mr. Filin has been bestowed with many awards and honorary titles. He ended his dancing career in 2008. In March 2011, he was appointed artistic director of the Bolshoi Theater amid fierce rivalry for the position.