Dikeç delighted fans who were drawn to his calm, cool demeanor while competing for Turkey

Yusuf Dikec, a Turkish Olympic silver medalist who shoots without special equipment, poses for a photo at Ataturk Airport in Istanbul, Turkiye on Augut 01, 2024. Dikec's cool demeanor at the event gained global attention.

Yusuf Dikec, a Turkish Olympic silver medalist who shoots without special equipment, poses for a photo at Ataturk Airport in Istanbul on Aug. 1, 2024. Photo: Adem Kutucu/Anadolu via Getty Images

Turkish shooter Yusuf Dikeç has captured the internet’s heart at the Paris Olympics thanks to his calm, cool demeanor. But despite what one viral post may claim, his own heart is (most likely) doing just fine.

Dikeç, 51, won a silver medal in the 10m air pistol mixed team competition on Tuesday, July 30, delighting fans who were drawn to his casual vibe, which included a lack of protective ear wear and no special lenses like most other shooters choose to wear.

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What Dikeç didn’t do was stand “emotionless” on the podium and declare, “Sharon, if you’re watching this, I want my dog back.”

Dikeç’s apparent dig at an ex-wife went viral after a Facebook account called The Sports Memery shared a post that claimed to explain his origin story, calling him a mechanic who took up shooting after a difficult divorce. The post, which has been liked more than 500,000 times, also said that Dikeç took a dig at his ex while accepting his silver medal.

The only problem? The story was satire. In actuality, Dikeç began shooting competitively in 2001, after he started working as a non-commissioned officer for the Gendarmerie General Command. He’s a four-time Olympian who previously competed in 2008, 2012, 2016 and 2020 — and his relationship status remains unknown.

Regardless, he celebrated his win — which he achieved alongside teammate Sevval Ilayda Tarhan — on Instagram with a photo taken under the Eiffel Tower.

“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……,” he captioned the post.

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