Vardanyan was born into a family of teachers . His mother taught Russian language and literature and his father was the director of a railway technical school . Vardanyan began wrestling in his hometown of Leninakan , Soviet Armenia ( now Gyumri , Armenia ) . After the 1988 Armenian earthquake , he moved to Zaporizhzhia , Ukraine . He graduated from Zaporozhye National Technical University and was a soldier of the State Border Service of Ukraine . As of 1999 he lives in Kiev
1988 Armenian earthquake
1988 Armenian earthquake
Armen Vardanyan