Although Turkish pistol shooter Yusuf Dikec didn't take home gold, he's been the talk of the town after his silver-medal performance during the team match. He wasn't flashy or anything like that. In fact, he was the complete opposite of flashy.
While the younger marksmen loaded up on specialized gear, 51-year-old Dikec competed wearing his prescription glasses (transitions at that!), a generic pair of plugs, and a hand in his pocket. In a video of the competition, he's seen with his greying hair taking aim with both eyes open and casually hitting black.
And on social media, people loved it. "Turkey sent a 51 yr old guy with no specialized lenses, eye cover or ear protection and got the silver medal," wrote one person on X. Others added: "I know a trained assassin when I see one," and another said: "No gadgets, no fancy clothing, like a true warrior, respect."
Joe Pompliano, a sports and business journalist, wrote: "I love how everyone uses specialized lenses for shooting to avoid blur and increase precision, but then Turkey sends out a guy who looks like he just picked up the gun for fun and wins silver."
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Who is Yusuf Dikec?
According to the International Shooting Sports Federation, Dikec won silver alongside his teammate Svval Tarhan in the 10m air pistol team match. And together, they medaled for the first time in Turkish history in the event.
Despite all the "regular guy" jokes, Dikec has been a longtime competitor in the shooting world. According to his ISSF profile, he's been competing in air pistol matches since 2001 in addition to his military career. What's more, in that time, he has medaled or won in 26 world events.
However, Dikec has seemed to embrace the "regular guy" status on social media. He's shared videos of himself juxtaposed with a dude all kitted up (who actually took gold).
But in all seriousness, he wrote after winning silver: "I fought until my last memory, but I wish I could bring the gold medal to my country." And he added: I am very happy that we have won the first Olympic medal in the history of the republic to my country of 85 million people who sent us off with their prayers. This medal belongs to the REPUBLIC OF TURKEY."
