Turkish Olympian Yusuf Dikec joins X, discusses 'robots' with Elon Musk

Yusuf Dikec made headlines after Tuesday's mixed team shooting event in Paris Olympics, where he competed in a casual attire without any special equipment and won a silver medal

Viral Turkish pistol shooter Yusuf Dikec, who became an overnight sensation after flawlessly winning the 10-metre air pistol shooting at the Paris Olympics last week, has joined social media platform X (formerly Twitter) and dedicated his first, and so far only, post to site owner Elon Musk.

“Hi Elon, do you think future robots can win medals at the Olympics with their hands in their pockets? How about discussing this in Istanbul, the cultural capital that unites continents?” Dikec said in his first post on the site, along with his viral photo from the Summer Games.

In response, the billionaire said “Robots will hit the centre of the bullseye every time” and added that he is looking forward to visiting Istanbul.

“It is one of the great cities of the world,” Musk added.

Since joining the platform, Dikec has fetched 141,000 followers so far. On Instagram, he boasts a following of over 489,000.

The 51-year-old Olympian made headlines after Tuesday’s mixed-team shooting event in Paris. Unlike his opponents, who were seen in protective gear and specialised lenses, he competed in a casual attire, turning all heads. Dikec clinched the silver medal in the event and later attributed his success to being a “natural.”

In the same event, India’s Manu Bhaker and Sarabjot Singh secured bronze.

His unbothered, casual appearance at the Games sparked a global meme fest with some joking that the Olympian might have been an “assassin” in a past life. People also drew playful comparisons to the popular action series fictional protagonist John Wick and speculated that he deliberately won silver to avoid suspicion.

Earlier Musk had also shared a viral meme that compared Dikec to platform X while other social media platforms to his opponents.

Dikec has been in every Summer Olympics Games since 2008 and began shooting in 2001.