Gazoz hungry for more titles despite two “hard” years

Remarkably, it was four years ago that the legendary run of Mete Gazoz began.

And while he continues to compete at the highest level outdoors, the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Champion has confirmed he will not shoot at international indoor tournaments this winter – opting instead to appear only at the Turkish Indoor Nationals running this week.

It was a mighty journey to get to that Olympic gold, one that involved years of tutelage under his father Metin Gazoz and longtime coach Yusuf Goktug Ergin.

But it was everything else around it that shot him to superstardom, not just the winning arrow versus Mauro Nespoli.

The upset victory versus the great Brady Ellison, that iconic photo which catches him smiling as the American shoots, the viral re-emergence of the video from Rio 2016 where Gazoz promised he’d win Tokyo after going out in the second round, and of course the signature celebration which he still uses today – reaching his right hand upwards before bringing his arm down and clenching his fist in front of his face.

That was only the beginning of an incredible run in archery no one had ever seen: becoming World Champion in 2023 and then European king in Essen 2024, the only athlete to have ever achieved the simultaneous triple crown – golds at the Olympic Games, World Archery Championships and European Archery Championships.

A beautifully painted mural outside the Antalya Centennial Archery Centre – the venue for the Antalya World Cups – is just the tip of the iceberg of his heroic stature in Türkiye as the country’s first Olympic Champion.

Hero, but also celebrity, as his endeavours have garnered him 382,000 followers on Instagram and appearances in popular Turkish television commercials.

Since completing the triple in Essen last year, however, the golden run – for now – halted just a tad in the 2025 outdoor season.

“I wasn’t disappointed,” said Gazoz when asked to reflect on the year. “This year has been the year I’ve won the most silver medals in my career, but I learned something from each of them and built on all of them.”

“I have no disappointment – we didn’t win a medal at the [Gwangju 2025] world championships, but it was a great event. I was satisfied with my scores.”

“I think this year for me was neither good nor bad – somewhere in between, a year where I gained experience.”

Gazoz was speaking ahead of the Nanjing 2025 Hyundai Archery World Cup Final where he missed out on gold and medals altogether, agonisingly losing in the semifinal to eventual champion Ellison and then France’s Thomas Chirault in the bronze medal match, in what was a busier period than normal before his sixth appearance at the season finale.

The Spring Arrows gold medallist became part of the successful Rajputana Royals in the inaugural Archery Premier League one week prior to the ultimatum of the international premier circuit, which he said changed his mental outlook ahead of Nanjing.

“Not in Gwangju, but I changed a little bit of my mindset in the Archery Premier League. I know now I can enjoy the game.”

“It’s been a little bit of a hard time the last two years because it’s really hard to win something in a big competition, but to defend your title is a completely different thing and I’ve learnt.”

“It’s harder.”

Entering Gwangju as the reigning champion – and the pressures that come with it – he denied, however, that it influenced his second-round shock elimination to Japan’s Aoshima Tetsuya.

He had also seeded a lowly 74th in qualifications – although it must be said Gazoz has previously gone on to win tournaments from such positions – but the Istanbul native cited “small bits of bad luck” and a “few personal issues” for the outcome.

As well as the demands he places on himself on the shooting line, off it his star has also risen as a well-sought-after figure in Turkish sports culture, holding valuable sponsorship deals with Red Bull, Nike, Allianz and Turkish design manufacturing giant Vestel.

Archers dealing with eyes on them in competition is part and parcel of the trade, but off it there are few who have to live in the limelight away from shooting. Gazoz insisted that is not a distraction – far from it, in fact.

“I think all of them are doing great work, both to support my own development and to help promote archery. Not just Turkish archery, but archery around the world, reaching larger audiences and gaining more recognition.”

“For me, this isn’t something distracting or bothersome – on the contrary, it’s something that makes me happy.”

Just like when he danced in Delhi – his favourite part, he admitted, of the Premier League – in Nanjing he did indeed appear to enjoy himself on the shooting line, from having a humorous acknowledgement of Matias Grande when they were drawn together on stage to high-fiving Ellison when they both shot perfect 30s.

In his personal life, he has always been content, satisfied, grateful – name as many synonyms for happy as you want.

The feeling of enjoyment has never left him, even after reaching the peak of a mountain no archer has ever touched before, nor has it quenched the desire to be a two-time Olympic, World or European Champion.

The World Cup Final is, after all, one box left to tick on his illustrious to-do list.

“I want to win more Olympic Games, more world championships, because I’m still hungry on the success side, but in my personal life I’m so happy.”

“I have money, I’m famous, but I think it’s an important thing to be happy – not just because of money and fame. Before fame, before money, I was happy. Now? I’m still happy but… [he pauses momentarily before a wry smile appears] the money is good! It’s not a bad thing because I can spend my money for my friends, my family, my team.”

If there were ever a song to sum up Gazoz right now, it would have to be Marvin Gaye’s Ain’t No Mountain High Enough, as the sentiment appears reinvigorated in his mind after the Archery Premier League.

Though, he doesn’t need a song – it’s what he has told himself and what father Metin and coach Goktug have instilled since they started this awe-inspiring job in 2010 to the top.

“Until it’s done” isn’t just his marketing slogan; it’s what lives in him to this very day.

Mete Gazoz is far from “done.”