Turkish Sports Figures Who Bring Joy to Our Faces

There are some people whose faces lift your spirits when you look at them. If someone who radiates such light achieves significant success in sports and makes their nation proud by garnering the support of the masses despite all the negativity surrounding them, that person is, in my opinion, a special person. In this article, I will write about the special people of Turkish sports.

Duygun Yarsuvat

I personally met the 35^th president of Galatasaray, also known as Coach Duygun. It was a great honor for me to be accepted as a member of Galatasaray Sports Club during the tenure of this important figure, who left his mark on Galatasaray’s presidency, especially with his accomplishments during his short seven-month tenure. I even had conversations with him. An extremely likeable, sociable man who radiated positive energy, President Duygun was, in my opinion, the best president Galatasaray Sports Club has ever had, even if only for a short time.

Elected president at the age of 77, Duygun Yarsuvat took over the presidency after a fiercely contested vote against former president Alp Yalman (see: https://www.aa.com.tr/tr/spor/galatasarayda-yarsuvat-donemi/107613, and consistently made the right moves. It’s safe to say he resurrected a system on the verge of collapse in terms of financial and sporting success. First, he took over the sports club during a very difficult time, and despite a weaker team compared to previous years and an inexperienced manager like Hamza Hamzaoğlu, his sound management and teamwork within six months led Galatasaray to three trophies. Duygun Yarsuvat, appointed through an extraordinary election on 15 October 2014, became the architect of the fourth star. Yarsuvat remained in office until 23 May 2015, while Dursun Özbek would ultimately win the championship. The fourth star and the 20^th Championship placed both presidents among the most memorable figures in history. After the 20^th Championship, the Turkish Cup and Super Cup were also won. While I don’t boast about being a Galatasaray fan, every Galatasaray president since Ali Tanrıyar has experienced the joy of winning a championship. (See: https://www.sporx.com/futbol/ekstra/galatasarayda-34-yildir-her-baskan-sampiyon-oluyorSXGLQ46697SXQ?sira=2).

If I may provide more details about our President Duygun, he was born on 18 August 1937, and passed away on 10 September 2021 (yesterday). He was a Turkish academic, lawyer, and sports administrator. He was the 35^th president of Galatasaray SK, the 3rd rector of Galatasaray University, and the 3^rd president of the Galatasaray Executive Board. You can read the details on Wikipedia: https://tr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duygun_Yarsuvat

Unfortunately, we lost our great president and important jurist Duygun Yarsuvat yesterday. I pray for God’s mercy upon him and patience for all his loved ones. Rest In Peace, President. I hope those who come after you can continue his light in Galatasaray and Atatürk’s Turkey.

On this occasion, I’d like to share the following video to help you visualize the character of our dear Duygun Yarsuvat, who some call ‘President Duygun,’ others call ‘Coach Duygun,’ and those close to him simply called him “Big Brother Duygun”:

Note: At the beginning of this video, you can also watch the interview with Attorney Ural Aküzüm, a board member during Duygun’s tenure as President, who also inspired and referred me to Galatasaray Sports Club.

Sümeyye Boyacı

I’m a huge fan of this wonderful girl, who always has a smile on her face, beautiful eyes, and seems constantly motivated. In addition to her Paralympic medals, she inspires many young people with disabilities with her positive energy.

Sümeyye’s determination and the light she radiates are so widely appreciated that the manufacturer of Barbie dolls, the popular toy for girls, even created a Barbie doll of Sümeyye. Thus, Sümeyye’s role as a role model in every way has reached an international level.

Let’s get acquainted with Sümeyye better. Sümeyye Boyacı (born 5 February 2003, Eskişehir) is a Turkish swimmer. She competes in the S5 disability class in the Freestyle, Backstroke, and Butterfly events. Competing at the 2016 Summer Paralympics, Boyacı won a silver medal in the 50m Backstroke S5 category at the 2019 World Paralympic Swimming Championships and a gold medal in the same category at the 2018 European Paralympic Swimming Championships. Sümeyye Boyacı was born in Eskişehir on 5 February 2003, the first child of her mother, Semra Boyacı, and father, İsmail Boyacı. Having been without both arms since birth, Boyacı also had a dislocated hip. You can read the details on Wikipedia: https://tr.wikipedia.org/wiki/S%C3%BCmeyye_Boyac%C4%B1

I congratulate our wonderful girl, with a champion spirit and good character, for her determination despite all her disabilities. Keep it up, Sümeyye.

Women’s National Volleyball Team

The Turkish women’s national volleyball team is governed by the Turkish Volleyball Federation and represents Turkey in international women’s volleyball competitions. As of 16 July 2021, it is ranked 4^th in the FIVB World Rankings. Since finishing 2^nd at the 2003 European Women’s Volleyball Championship, they have been known in Turkey as the ‘Sultans of the Net.’ This title was bestowed upon the team by the TRT commentators who covered the matches that year, following their legendary performance. The team has achieved some of the country’s most successful record in team sports at the national team level. (See Wikipedia: https://tr.wikipedia.org/wiki/T%C3%BCrkiye_kad%C4%B1n_mill%C3%AE_voleybol_tak%C4%B1m%C4%B1 )

Thanks to Vakıfbank and Eczacıbaşı, who have invested heavily in volleyball for years, Turkish volleyball has become accustomed to international success every year, surpassing other team sports. These successes, which have continued since 2003 and are consistent, continue to improve and maintain a high level of confidence as players change and even as new generations are formed. The same applies to all sports.

The championship the Turkish national team has participated in the most is the European Championship. Turkey has participated in the European Championships nine times and reached the final in the 2003 championship held in Ankara. This is the greatest achievement in Turkish volleyball history.

The national team started the 2020 Olympic Games with a resounding victory, defeating the previous Olympic champions, China, 3-0 in their first match, securing their place in the group stage with three victories. However, they were unluckily eliminated by South Korea in the quarterfinals, losing 3-2.

Then, the team participated in the European Championship, winning every match and advancing to the semifinals. However, they lost to Serbia in the semifinals, earning the right to play in the third-place match. This match brought another significant international victory to our country. Let this success serve as an example for the Turkish men’s national football team, which lost 6-1 to the Netherlands in the European Cup qualifiers.

In my opinion, the most important feature of the current women’s volleyball team is its diverse group of individuals. They inspire and give hope to Turkish women in an environment where femicide continues to rise. They display the highest level of passion and determination while competing in challenging matches, and they have a lot of fun doing it all. Here’s information about these remarkable women, their positions and clubs:

Busenaz Sürmeneli and Buse Naz Çakıroğlu

Because my mother’s side is from Trabzon, I have great affection for these two great women of Trabzon. It’s a wonderful coincidence that they both share the same name, are from Trabzon, and have both brought the country some of the greatest successes in women’s boxing in history. Greetings to my mother’s hometown, which consistently produces important athletes for Turkish sports (not just football). Now, let’s briefly introduce these wonderful women who set an example with their character:

Busenaz Sürmeneli (born 25 June 1998) is a world and Olympic champion Turkish boxer. A native of Trabzon, she is also a Trabzonspor Club athlete. Busenaz, who has achieved the greatest success in women’s boxing in Turkey, looks set to hold off on medals for a long time if she maintains her training pace. I’ve watched her matches, so I can make this prediction. You can read the details on Wikipedia: https://tr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Busenaz_S%C3%BCrmeneli

You can also watch Busenaz’s future plans and comments on Turkish women here:Instagram’da Motivasyon | Başarı | MLYNR.: “Tokyo olimpiyatlarına damga vuran Türk kadınlarımızdan Busenaz Sürmeneli başarının perde arkasını anlatıyor. #busenazsürmeneli #motivasyon…”

Buse Naz Çakıroğlu (born 26 May 1996) became a European champion in 2019. She secured a quota for the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. A native of Trabzon, Buse Naz Çakıroğlu is a Fenerbahçe Sports Club athlete. She is Turkey’s first female boxer to earn an Olympic quota. She won a silver medal in the flyweight division at the 2020 Summer Olympics. This medal is the first medal won at an Olympics in Turkish history. You can read the details on Wikipedia: https://tr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buse_Naz_%C3%87ak%C4%B1ro%C4%9Flu

Mete Gazoz