Shooting isn't one of the more popular sports at the Olympics, but thanks to social media, a few sharpshooters have captured the hearts of fans.
People worldwide came together to cheer on these athletes, from a silver-haired Olympics veteran from Turkey to a rizzed-up mother from South Korea. They appear to ooze charisma, uniqueness, nerve and talent. All of them have one thing in common: attitude.
Yusuf Dikeç
Turkish pistol shooter Yusuf Dikeç went viral for his seemingly casual attitude while shooting his way to a silver medal at the 2024 Olympics.
The most-shared images show Dikeç shooting in a T-shirt with one hand in his pocket, a seemingly standard pair of glasses and an impassive look on his face. He's been likened to a regular guy competing at the Olympics, or even a hitman.
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The 51-year-old is no newcomer, though. He's competed at every Summer Olympics since 2008.
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Some memes contrast Dikeç with his Serbian opponent Damir Mikec, who was wearing a blinder over one eye, a lens over the other and a large pair of ear defenders.
Dikeç and Sevval Ilayda Tarhan won the silver medal in mixed team 10-meter air pistol shooting Tuesday. It was Turkey's first-ever medal in Olympic shooting. Unlike Dikeç, his teammate Tarhan was competing with large ear defenders and a visor, as well as braids in the red and white colors of the Turkish flag. She was shooting with one hand in her pocket, too.
Dikeç was 13th in his individual event and is now done at the Paris Olympics. He's looking ahead to the next Games in 2028, though. “I hope next in Los Angeles (for) a gold medal,” he said Tuesday.
What does he think about going viral? Dikeç seems to be embracing the trend, reposting a video compilation of Turkish-language memes about him to his Instagram page.
Kim Yeji
South Korean pistol shooter Kim Yeji's confident demeanor and dramatic stance have brought praise on social media for her “main character energy”.
“The Olympic #shootingsport stars we didn’t know we needed,” the official Olympics account on X posted Thursday with pictures of Kim and Dikeç.
Viewers noticed that her stone-cold attitude was in contrast to a small stuffed elephant in her back pocket, which, according to the Olympics, belongs to her daughter.
Kim won silver in the women's 10-meter air pistol event Sunday behind her South Korean teammate Oh Ye Jin. Kim and Oh are roommates and Kim said she was pleased Oh got the gold because she sees her like a “youngest sibling”.
Kim is set to compete again Friday in qualification for the women's 25-meter pistol event.
Jiang Ranxin
An image of the Tokyo 2020 gold and bronze medalist from China in the mixed 10m air pistol mixed team and 10m air pistol women, Jian Ranxin, became a reaction image and a viral meme for her focused and seemingly blank expression as she points the air pistol towards her target.
She was competing against Kim and Oh, eventually placing sixth.
Daehan Choe
Another South Korean athlete who went viral due to his demeanor is Daehan Choe.
Spectators who may have come across air rifle shooting for the first time noticed his arched back as he aimed. However, his shooting form isn't as dramatic or as uncommon as it seems.
According to Iranian shooting coach Elham Hashemi Masoumi, who wrote about shooting technique for the Asian Shooting Confederation, the shooter's upper body should lean back to get the weight of the rifle over the pelvis, which is supporting the elbow.
"Centre of gravity of the rifle needs to be as close to the body centre line as possible, to achieve a good balance and hold," she wrote.
Choe may have also been eye-catching due to all the visual gear he was wearing. Although he may have won the fan-favorite award, he placed 7th in men's 10m air rifle.
Why some shooters don't wear gear?
Shooters have some freedom about how they dress for competition.
Many shooters at the Olympic range in Chateauroux, central France, choose to wear visors to reduce the glare of the lights or so-called blinders over one eye to get a better focus for the eye which is looking down the sights.
It's not quite true that Dikeç wasn't wearing any shooting gear. He had yellow earplugs to block out distractions while he shot in the final. They just weren't visible from the angle of the image which went viral.
