Born in Makhachkala, Dagestan ASSR, Soviet Union and of Avar descent, Murtazaliev has won gold medals in heavyweight divisions at the 1999 FILA World Championships and the 2000 Summer Olympics.

Murtazaliev represented Ukraine at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, and represented Russia at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, where he won gold in the men's freestyle 97 kg competition.

[1][2] In 2013, he returned his medal to the IOC in protest of its vote to briefly drop wrestling from the Summer Olympic programme.

[7][8] Murtazaliev was a United Russia party deputy to the Legislative Assembly of the Republic of Dagestan.

[9][10] In 2015, the prosecution office opened a criminal case against Murtazaliev on financing terrorism as well as suspected him in relation to a number of murders.