Turkish Olympic shooter wants to trademark viral pose

Turkish Paris Olympics marksman Yusuf Dikec has filed an application to trademark his nonchalant stance during the Paris Games, which went viral around the world, his coach told AFP on Monday.

According to his coach Erdinc Bilgili, the move to protect the commercial use of his pose at the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office is a response to others who tried to register his pose as a trademark without Dikec’s permission.

“After being made aware of the many trademark registration initiatives that were carried out without Yusuf Dikec’s knowledge, we filed an application about a week ago,” Bilgili told AFP, adding that the “other applications have been rejected”.

Dikec’s apparent calmness sparked a flurry of memes online, with some comparing him to fictional spy James Bond. Tesla billionaire founder Elon Musk also shared a video of him striking the pose.

His pose was also widely imitated by his fellow athletes when he won silver with his teammate Sevval Ilayda Tarhan, the first Turkish medal in the 10m mixed team air pistol event.

Chelsea striker Nicolas Jackson did the same on Sunday when he celebrated his goal against Crystal Palace in the English Premier League.

Various memorabilia bearing his image are for sale, including T-shirts, mugs and mobile phone cases, Turkish news channel TRT Haber reported.

The Turkish trademark office did not immediately respond to AFP’s requests for comment.

In an interview with AFP in early August, Dikec said there was a natural explanation for his hand-in-pocket technique.

“I just do it to keep my body more stable, to keep my balance. That’s all there is to it,” he said.