Khassan Baiev was born as a fraternal twin in Alkhan-Kala, a suburb of Grozny, in 1963 [REF].
Plagued by frailty and illness growing up, Baiev took up martial arts to overcome his physical weaknesses - by late adolescence he was a black belt judoka who won national competitions and faced a promising career as a coach in the sports-obsessed Soviet Union [REF].