Paris Olympics’ most viral athletes: Turkish ‘hitman’, ‘Superman’ gymnast, shooter with ‘main character energy’

The first week of the Paris Olympics has seen the internet discover plenty of athletes that it has taken a liking to: from a South Korean shooter who exudes “main character energy” to an American gymnast who reminded everyone of someone who lives a Clark Kent-Superman double life.

And then of course there was the Turkish pistol shooter who has earned nicknames ranging from the “Olympics’ 007” to a hitman.

But away from their two minutes of viral fame-attracting images, each of these athletes have a story. We introduce you to the people behind the viral memes of the Paris Olympics:

Yusuf Dikec a.k.a The Turkish Hitman/Olympics’ 007

Turkish pistol shooter Yusuf Dikec and Sevval Ilayda Tarhan won the silver medal in mixed team 10-meter air pistol shooting event. Yes, the same event where Manu Bhaker and Sarabjot Singh won a bronze.

Why is Yusuf Dikec famous?

It was not the silver medal that made Dikec a viral sensation. He became famous for shooting with minimal gear on him: he had neither a visor, nor blinders, lens or ear defenders (even though he wore very tiny ear plugs) that many pistol shooters routinely sport.

In one of the most-shared images on the internet from the week gone by, Dikec can be seen shooting while rocking a white T-shirt and prescription spectacles.

Turkish shooter Yusuf Dikec, right, looks on as Turkey’s coach talks to Dikec’s teammate Sevval Ilayda Tarhan during a time-out break at the 10m air pistol mixed team final, in Chateauroux, France, at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. The Turkish team won the silver medal. (AP Photo)

He looks unusually relaxed despite the pressure of the Olympic stage. Both his eyes are open. And one of his hands is casually in his pocket. Ironically, on the official website of the Paris Olympics, Dikec’s bio page states that his philosophy is: “Success doesn’t come with your hands in your pockets.”

Shooters wear visors to reduce the glare of the lights and blinders (which looks like a patch) over one eye to get a better focus for the eye which is looking down the sights. Since these are both non-mandatory items, Dikec chose to not use them.

The 51-year-old Turkish pistol shooter is competing in his fifth straight Olympics. His first appearance at an Olympic Games was at Beijing 2008. Over the years, he has racked up seven European championship titles.

He had one of his best years on the shooting circuit a decade back, when he claimed two world championship titles in the 25m standard pistol and 25m centre fire pistol events besides a silver in 10m air pistol.

A lot of the memes about Dikec have called him a hitman or an undercover Turkish agent. Dikec does have an armed forces connection. He took up shooting as a sport in 2001 after he started working as a non-commissioned officer for the Gendarmerie General Command (which is a general armed, law enforcement organization in Turkey).

After winning silver, Dikec gave an interview to Turkish channel TGRT Haber, where he opened up about his unconventional shooting technique.

“My shooting technique is one of the rare shooting techniques in the world. I shoot with both eyes open. Even the referees are surprised by this,” he said.

He went on to say that winning an Olympic medal was not a surprise for him because “this year we prepared a lot and worked a lot… This success belongs to all of Turkey.”

Stephen Nederoscik a.k.a the gymnastics Superman

Gymnast Stephen Nederoscik’s routine on the pommel horse earned Team USA a bronze medal, their first men’s team medal at the Games since Beijing 2008. On Saturday, he won another bronze, this time in the individual pommel horse event.

Why is Stephen Nederoscik famous?

But Stephen Nederoscik went viral when a clip surfaced where the rest of the American gymnastics team was shown celebrating wildly while he sat on a chair wearing his spectacles, reactionless.

Soon, there were Clark Kent comparisons as the internet spotted that the bespectacled gymnast sat quietly on the sidelines while the rest of his teammates competed in multiple events during the team final.

Stephen Nedoroscik, of the United States, competes during the men’s artistic gymnastics individual pommel finals at Bercy Arena at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Saturday, Aug. 3, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

Then, when time came, he competed in the pommel horse event and sealed a medal for the USA. What makes Nederoscik’s story so fascinating is that he does not compete on other apparatuses besides the pommel horse. He is the only specialist in the US men’s gymnastics team since the pommel horse has not been a strong suit for the USA.

He competed for 45 seconds. Made an impression. And then went back to his chair.

“It went really well today, I handled the nerves very well,” the 25-year-old from Worcester, Massachusetts said afterwards. “I worked my whole life up to those 45 seconds.”

He was also unflappable after his routine.

“This is just another day of doing gymnastics. Sure it’s the biggest stage in the world. It only happens once every four years, but at the same time I’m putting chalk on my hands and doing the horse for the team, it’s nothing different,” said Nedoroscik.

Kim Yeji a.k.a. The Coolest Olympian

South Korean pistol shooter Kim Yeji was another shooter who caught the internet’s eyes during the first week of the Olympics.

Kim won a silver medal in the women’s 10-meter air pistol event Sunday behind her South Korean teammate Oh Ye Jin.

Why is Kim Yeji famous?

If Dikec’s stance was laid back, Yeji, the internet declared, exuded “main character energy” for how confident and slick she looked while shooting. Wearing a black cap backwards on her head and sporting a black jacket, some people on social media also noticed that she had a stuffed elephant toy hanging from her waist as she competed.

South Korea’s Kim Yeji prepares to compete in the 25m pistol precision women’s qualification round at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Friday, Aug. 2, 2024, in Chateauroux, France. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)

According to the Korean news outlet Insight, the stuffed elephant toy belongs to Kim’s five-year-old daughter. The report also pointed out that Kim has only been seeing her daughter via video call for a few months now since she entered the Jincheon National Athletes’ Village to train for Paris 2024.

Kim Yeji was quoted as saying in the article, “My daughter will go to kindergarten and brag about me for going to the Olympics. And now she can brag about me winning a medal at the Olympics.”

Giorgia Villa a.k.a the cheesiest Olympian

Giorgia Villa was part of Italy’s silver medal-winning women’s team in the all-round event in gymnastics at the Paris Olympics.

Why is Giorgia Villa famous?

While athletes get all sorts of sponsorship deals during the Olympics, Villa became famous during Paris 2024 because someone discovered a past sponsorship from Parmesan Reggiano cheese (a type of Parmesan that is only produced in Italy). In photos that have surfaced, Villa can be seen sitting on and embracing a giant wheel of cheese.

Giorgia Villa was part of Italy’s silver medal-winning women’s team in the all-round event in gymnastics at the Paris Olympics. But she has gone viral for old images of her posing with wheels of cheese.

The 21-year-old Villa hails from Ponte San Pietro. She could have been at the Tokyo Olympics three years ago as well, having qualified for it. But, she sprained her ankle just days before her trip and never competed.

A report in ABC News mentions that Villa started gymnastics at the age of 3. Her mother signed her up for gymnastics training lessons because she had too much energy.

“I had just started nursery school, but I immediately understood that I would love that sport with all my being,” Villa was quoted as saying. “I left school and, still wearing my pink apron, I couldn’t wait to enter that gym and jump and run feeling free and happy.”

Villa trains at the Italian Gymnastics Federation’s International Academy of Brescia. This has been a second home to her since she was 11 years old.

Ilona Maher, a.k.a the body-positivity spreading Tik Tok star

Ilona Maher was part of the American women’s rugby team which won the bronze medal at the Paris Games. This was the first ever medal in the event for the Americans.

Why is Ilona Maher famous?

The official website of Paris Olympics mentions that Maher is the “most followed active rugby player on the planet”.

The 27-year-old has 2.7m followers on both Instagram and TikTok. Her appeal stems from her sense of humour and her videos that show athletes of all shapes and sizes. She has also taken on social media trolls who have called her masculine or tried to make fun of her weight.

She has made some of the most entertaining behind-the-scenes footage from the Games Village at the Paris Olympics. On her social media feed, there are photos with Snoop Dogg and videos exchanging pins with Simone Biles.

Before the Olympics began, she had posted a video where she appealed for fans to be more considerate about athletes from all shapes and sizes.

United States’ Ilona Maher celebrates after her team won the women’s bronze medal Rugby Sevens match between the United States and Australia at the 2024 Summer Olympics, in the Stade de France, in Saint-Denis, France, Tuesday, July 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)

“As the Olympics officially start today, I want you all to take a look at all the different body types on display. All body types matter, all body types are worthy, from the smallest gymnast to the tallest volleyball player, to a rugby player, shot putter, sprinter.

“All body types are beautiful and can do amazing things, so truly see yourself in these athletes and know that you can do it too.”

When one social media commenter tried to troll her by saying that she looked like her body mass index (BMI) was 30, she responded: “I think you were trying to roast me, but this actually is a fact. I do have a BMI of 30 — well, 29.3 to be more exact,” Maher said on a TikTok video. “I’ve been considered overweight my whole life.”

Maher lives in San Diego where she is a registered nurse. In high school, she tried her hands at sports like hockey, basketball and softball before falling in love with rugby.

She also competed at Tokyo 2020 where Team USA lost in the quarter-finals.

She recently ended a video with a message to trolls: “I’m going to the Olympics… And you’re not.”

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