Turkey’s Olympic shooting superstar seeks modesty
Despite his Olympic gold and online fanbase, Turkish pistol shot Yusuf Dikec wants to stay grounded. Pictures of the athlete cocking his pistol, winning a silver medal in Paris with his off hand in his pocket, and not wearing glasses or headphones went viral. Despite his internet celebrity, Dikec claimed to be “the same man”. “The day after our silver medal, everyone was talking to me about the number of times my photos were shared on social networks,” he said.
But I don’t care. “I’ll live as before,” he stated at his training complex in Ankara, Turkey. Many Olympic athletes connect winning with the master marksman’s comfortable attitude. Musk, the millionaire founder of Tesla and SpaceX, posted a 170 million-view video of himself striking the posture. Memes on Dikec’s confidence and sangfroid have flooded the internet. Some users said, “The name’s Dikec. Yusuf Dikec,” referring to James Bond. Some memes depicted Dikec as a figure in “The Matrix” while others showed him smoking a cigarette to emphasise his casual posture.
No gear needed. However, the 51-year-old’s actual triumph was winning Turkey’s first mixed-team 10m air pistol medal alongside Sevval Ilayda Tarhan. He explained his apparent casual approach to punishment with a natural reason. “Some thought my hand in my pocket was arrogant. “They don’t know me or shooting sports,” he laughed. I simply do it to maintain my equilibrium and stability. Nothing else “, he said. Former security forces member Dikec preferred to shoot without protection after retiring a year ago.
“Glasses, headphones, and other equipment bother me while I photograph with my eyes open. He explained why he doesn’t utilise them. Dikec is rare in pistol shooting since most shooters cover one eye. Tarhan, another teammate, shoots hand-in-pocket without gear except headphones and a visor. Some social media users said she should get as much attention as her boyfriend. At 15, the 24-year-old started shooting for fun, thinking of becoming a policewoman or army.
“We’ve just shown the world that you can be successful without needing any equipment,” she remarked. His “beautiful and natural” stance represents the Olympic spirit, not self-confidence, said Dikec. “Fair play, the rejection of doping and the putting of talent and the human body in its natural state to the test are all part of the Olympic spirit,” stated. “People have appreciated it, which pleases me.” Love and devotion
But his seemingly simple skill is the consequence of 24 years of hard shooting since his security forces days, winning global and European championships before the Games. Over a year, he trained for four hours a day, six days a week for Paris. Dikec regrets missing out on the 2028 Games in Los Angeles gold medal he wants. “We are one of the best teams in the world, I can even say we are the best,” he remarked. We broke an Olympic record with our hard work. We were unlucky on last day.”
He believes just hard effort and dedication are sufficient. “I even told Elon Musk,” he claimed, recalling an X chat after Musk published a video of him. “I asked him if robots could win a medal with their hand in their pocket,” he remarked. “I don’t think so, because there are things that neither technology nor money can achieve, because they require heart.”
