Turkey had its worst Olympics in 40 years despite Dikeç sensation

Turkey concluded the Paris 2024 Olympics without winning a gold medal, a first since the 1984 Los Angeles Games. The country’s athletes secured three silver and five bronze medals, placing them 64th in the overall medal standings.

Turkey sent 101 athletes to Paris, a lower number compared to the last three Olympic Games but still significant by the country’s standards. Among the competitors, boxer Tuğrulhan Erdemir was barred from participating due to a doping violation.

The Turkish team’s silver medals were won by Buse Naz Çakıroğlu (women's 50kg boxing), Hatice Akbaş (women's 54kg boxing), and the mixed team of Yusuf Dikeç and Şevval İlayda Tarhan in the 10-meter air pistol shooting event.

Bronze medals were earned by Taha Akgül (men’s 125kg wrestling), Buse Tosun Çavuşoğlu (women’s 68kg wrestling), Esra Yıldız Kahraman (women's 57kg boxing), Nafia Kuş Aydın (women's +67kg taekwondo), and the men’s archery team composed of Mete Gazoz, Muhammed Abdullah Yıldırmış, and Ulaş Berkim Tümer.

Yusuf Dikeç: An Olympic meme sensation

While Turkey may have missed out on gold, one of its athletes became an internet sensation. The pistol shooter Yusuf Dikeç, 51, went viral on social media for his relaxed demeanor while competing in the 10-meter air pistol event. He and Şevval İlayda Tarhan secured Turkey's first-ever Olympic medal in shooting with a silver in the mixed team 10-meter air pistol event. Mikec and Zorana Arunovic of Serbia claimed gold, while India took bronze.

Images of Dikeç casually shooting with one hand in his pocket and sporting a regular T-shirt and glasses, in contrast to his heavily geared opponents, spread quickly across social media platforms. Many memes likened him to a "regular guy" competing in the Olympics or even a "hitman."

The official Olympics account also highlighted the contrast between Dikeç’s casual look and the high-tech appearance of South Korean gold medalist Kim Yeji:

The Olympic #shootingsport stars we didn’t know we needed.

🇰🇷 Kim Yeji 🤝 Yusuf Dikeç 🇹🇷 pic.twitter.com/gfkyGjFg4I

— The Olympic Games (@Olympics) August 1, 2024

Dikeç, a former gendarmerie petty officer, has represented Turkey in every Summer Olympics since 2008. His understated style drew attention, particularly when compared to his Serbian opponent, Damir Mikec, who wore specialized shooting gear including a blinder and large ear defenders.

Dikeç’s military background, where shooters are often trained to keep both eyes open, may explain his preference for minimal equipment during the competition. Tarhan, who also shot with one hand in her pocket, wore ear defenders, a visor, and had her hair braided in the colors of the Turkish flag.

Dikeç's posture while shooting turned into a celebration during the Olympics:

Another one. https://t.co/bMN7TsbDxV pic.twitter.com/xsqbdTaIY7

— The Olympic Games (@Olympics) August 9, 2024

Turkey's Olympic Games record

Turkey's last gold medal at the Olympics was in Tokyo 2020. Four of Turkey’s medals in Japan came from karate, which was excluded from this year’s games.

The Atlanta 1996 Games remain Turkey's most successful in 40 years, with four gold medals won, thanks to legendary weightlifters Naim Süleymanoğlu and Halil Mutlu, and wrestler Hamza Yerlikaya, who was dubbed "The Wrestler of the Century" by FILA.

Turkey’s all-time Olympic record includes 41 gold medals, with 29 coming from wrestling and eight from weightlifting. Süleymanoğlu and Mutlu account for six of those golds.

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