With his ordinary glasses and his relaxed, almost disinterested pose, Turkish Olympic shooter and silver medalist at the 2024 Paris Olympics Yusuf Dikeç has become an internet star. Social media has been filled with photographs, videos and even memes depicting the 51-year-old with his hand in his pocket, a simple T-shirt, seemingly standard glasses and an impassive look during the 10-meter team pistol final. In shooting sports, both male and female athletes have a certain freedom in choosing their clothing. However, many of them prefer optical devices to reduce the glare of the lights, supplemented by blinkers to better focus the viewfinder and headphones to isolate themselves. But Yusef showed up for the shoot with only his classic glasses and his ordinary earplugs. But the star of social media and the 2024 Olympics did not come from nowhere: he is a retired non-commissioned officer of the Turkish gendarmerie and a member of the Jandarma Gücü sports club, for which he still competes today. A multiple Turkish champion during his career, he is also the national record holder in various pistol competition categories. And at Paris 2024, Dikeç and his teammate – Sevval athlete Ilayda Tarhan – brought Turkey to the second step of the podium in the 10-meter pistol medley category for the first time.
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