Yusuf Dikeç – what watch is the viral Turkish Olympic sport shooter wearing?
Zach BlassYusuf Dikeç. By now, you are likely familiar with everyone’s new favourite Olympic sharpshooter – his nonchalant BDE levels as high as Anakin Skywalker’s midichlorian count. Other competitors have been seen wearing a full suite of tech, with one fashion-forward sport shooter from Seoul being nominated by viewers around the world as a top candidate to be a villain in a John Wick film. Dikeç, on the other hand, has been thrust into the limelight with his seemingly carefree, no-fuss aura – sporting far less gear, and assuming his now-signature pose with one hand in the pocket. The Olympic silver medallist has become the subject of countless viral memes, and there was even a false widespread origin story he picked up sport shooting after a heated divorce – sorry to break it to you – it’s not true. We’re glad to tell you that we have finally discovered the watch worn on his wrist while competing – a Nacar.
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The watch is a Nacar Aquamatic 07-290699-BNS6, a quartz watch with 200 metres of water-resistance and day and date complications. While Nacar is not on the radar of watch geeks, the distinct characteristics of the watch make it easy to identify if you know what you’re looking for. It boasts a large, 46mm blackened steel case, with a heavily guarded crown at the 4 o’clock position that presumably sets the time and date, with a second crown at 2 that controls the rotatable inner-bezel. It’s this tough look of a crown guard set up, large black case, and green textured rubber strap seen in recent photos of Yusuf Dikeç that gave away what he wore.
The Nacar brand, while obscure, is actually over a century old – founded by Turkish-Armenian brothers Ohannes and Kevork Nacaroglu in 1921. The brand was established under their Zila Watch Company, and the brother duo divided and conquered with Ohannes stationed in Bienne, Switzerland, and Kevork residing in Turkey. This allowed one brother to oversee production, while the other focused on the Turkish market they were targeting.
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Fast-forward to the present, the original family no longer owns the brand, but its current owner Konyali Saatcilik has its quartz watches made in the Far East, and its mechanical watches made in Switzerland. If Nacar wants to lean into the rising fame of Yusuf Dikeç, it better enlist him as a brand ambassador ASAP.