The 2024 Paris Olympics can’t get out of their own way. Between blasphemous opening ceremony moments to rage and counter-rage over gender-challenged individuals competing in women’s sports, it seems that naught but controversy flows through this Olympiad as surely as the river Seine.
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Enter Turkish cat lover Yusuf Dikeç.
The 51-year-old Dikeç, who gives every impression of being the poster child for mild-mannered, inoffensive middle-aged men everywhere, apparently had nothing much going on this week. So, he decided to take a vacation to France, while there spending some time casually enjoying his hobby.
South Korea sent a fully-kitted out player for the Olympic shooting.
Turkey sent an guy with no specialized lenses, eye cover or ear protection and got the silver medal pic.twitter.com/8xJOr9qCPf— LogKa (@LogKa11) July 31, 2024
The tweet isn’t completely accurate, as Dikeç was wearing earplugs. That duly noted, the medal part is true. Dikeç and his partner Şevval İlayda Tarhan, who is less than half Dikeç’s age, won the silver medal in the 10-meter air pistol mixed team event.
Dikeç’s casual air is no act, but rather the natural byproduct of a man comfortable in his own skin and with his skill.
“I shoot with both eyes, most shooters do it with one. So I didn’t want that all that equipment. Shooting with two eyes — I believe that it’s better. I’ve done a lot of research on it, so I didn’t need the equipment,” Dikeç told Turkish radio station Radyo Gol.
“Shooting with my hand in my pocket has nothing to do with artistry. I am more motivated and feel more comfortable while shooting,” he said, adding that this stance “is actually about bringing the body to equilibrium and focusing and concentrating.”
Confident but not cocky. Exactly how we like our heroes.
Dikeç is no newcomer to competitive shooting. He first medaled in 2005 at the Mediterranean Games. Including his newly acquired Olympic hardware, he has won 10 gold, 11 silver, and six bronze medals at 10, 25, and 50-meter distances in assorted international competitions. I believe the appropriate expression, albeit slightly dated, is “mad skillz.”
One of sports‘ greatest strengths comes from relatable athletes. The ones who are affable and personable when not competing draw the greatest fan base because, despite the obvious difference in physical talent, there is a common thread binding us together. A prime example of this is Caitlin Clark, who, all the mean girls’ garbage thrown her way by assorted sulky WNBA players notwithstanding, clearly loves playing the game and being a normal, likable person off the court.
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While little is known of Yusuf Dikeç away from the shooting range, he gives every appearance of utter normalcy. Or, at the least, normalcy as embodied by someone who could literally shoot the lights out while giving all indications being able to do so is as matter-of-fact as … oh, having a kitten perched on your shoulder.
