Career
He was only the alternate to Russia"s 1996 Olympic team due to a shoulder injury that required surgery. Injuries also kept him off the team for the 1997 World Championships. Shabayev died of a heart attack on 5 August 1998.
His funeral was held six days later, and gymnasts Alexei Nemov, Nikolai Kryukov, Elena Grosheva and Roza Galieva were in attendance.