A Famous ’92 Olympian : At 15, Woodbridge Swimmer Buyukuncu a National Hero in His Native Turkey

Derya Buyukuncu could never get enough of those videos.

There, on the screen, were the best swimmers in the world. There, in his parents’ living room in Istanbul, was Buyukuncu, a wide-eyed 12-year-old, mesmerized by the visions of past Olympics.

The 1988 100-meter backstroke was his favorite. He played it and replayed it. Each time, Buyukuncu made himself a promise.

“The first time I saw it, I said, ‘I’m going to go to the Olympics,’ ” Buyukuncu said. “I even prayed that no one would break the world record, because I wanted to break it.”

Such is the imagination of a child. Now, still years from adulthood, Buyukuncu has made much of those daydreams.

He will go to the Olympics, swimming for Turkey in Barcelona this summer. He will compete in the 100 and 200 backstrokes. As for world records, well, there is time, plenty of time.

Buyukuncu, a 15-year-old sophomore at Woodbridge High School, is on the verge of greatness.

So says his coach, Dave Salo of the Irvine Novaquatics, who took over his training last August. So says his mother, Ayse, who brought her son to the United States to hone his skills. And so says Buyukuncu.

“I will make the final at the Olympic this time,” he said. “In 1996, I will win a gold medal. I will set the world record in 1994, maybe 1995.”

That may seem like brash talk, even cockiness, for a kid from a country that has never won an Olympic swimming medal. But this is not an ordinary kid.

“This year he may even surpass his own expectations,” Salo said. “He was thinking of making the final eight in Barcelona. Now he has a very good opportunity of winning a medal. It’s just a matter of what color it will be.”

Buyukuncu, who is a intimidating figure at 6 feet 2, 200 pounds, has found peace in the suburban city of Irvine. It’s a place to train, a place far from his adoring public.

In Turkey, he is simply known as “Derya.” No last name is needed.

There, he says he can not walk the streets without being besieged. Fans ask for his autograph. Others beg for a photograph. Nowhere is he just another face in the crowd.

“We went to a soccer game one time and had just sat down when it started,” said Tunch Doker, a close friend and Novaquatics teammate. “People stopped watching the game just to get his autograph. He’s that famous.”

In February, Buyukuncu went home to be honored as the sportsman of the year by Milliyet, Turkey’s largest newspaper.

The award was presented to him at a formal dinner. The presenter? Turgut Ozal, president of Turkey.

“Over there, he’s like Michael Jordan,” Salo said.

Buyukuncu started swimming at 7, then quit after one year. But his sister, Berna, who is two years older, continued to swim competitively.

She was always bringing home medals and trophies from races. To an 8-year-old, these baubles became an incentive.

“I liked that stuff, so I told my parents I wanted to swim again,” Buyukuncu said.

He developed quickly.

At 9, he competed for the national team. He won a gold medal in the 100 butterfly at the Balkan Games when he was 10.

Buyukuncu burst on the scene two years ago after performing well in international meets. By current count, he has set 134 Turkish swimming records.

“People said I wasn’t normal because I swam so fast,” Buyukuncu said.

His stature increased last summer after he won the 100 and 200 backstrokes in the European Junior Championships. It was the first time a Turkish swimmer had won at such a prestigious event.

Buyukuncu returned home a national hero. He went from talk show to talk show. His face popped up in magazines, next to movie and television stars.

In short, he had about as much attention as a 15-year-old can stand.

“It’s nice to have so many people like you,” Buyukuncu said. “They always want me to go on television, but that was boring. They would ask me about my personal life, who I was dating and stuff.”

Since he came to the United States, Buyukuncu’s reputation at home has grown. Two weeks ago, he broke Derek Weatherford’s age-group national record in the 200-yard backstroke at the U.S. Swimming junior nationals.

Buyukuncu’s time was 1 minute 46.08 seconds; it was reported extensively in Turkey.

“If I win a gold medal (in the Olympics), I’ll get flowers and kisses,” Buyukuncu said, laughing.

Not to mention some monetary gains.

“I’ll be set for life,” he said. “The government will give me a flat, a car and money. But first, I’ll have to win a medal.”

To get it, Buyukuncu has come to the United States, where his celebrity status ended. Few outside the world of swimming know of him, which is just fine.

“I can focus more over here,” he said. “I still have so much to learn.”

Buyukuncu and Ayse, who is also his nutritionist, moved here so Buyukuncu could train with the Novaquatics. He said he had gone as about as far in his country as possible.

“We don’t have the facilities that the United States has,” Derya said. “This pool I train in is awesome.”

The Turkish government gave Buyukuncu a scholarship to train here. He and his mother, a pharmacist, also live off the proceeds of his sponsors.

His father, Yilmaz, a surgeon, and Berna remained in Turkey.

“It was a very tough decision, but our swimming federation wanted us to train in another country,” Ayse said. “They said for swimming, go to America.”

America was more than willing to accept Buyukuncu. In fact, coaches were falling all over themselves to attract the young swimmer.

From Orlando, Fla., to Seattle, they made contact. Even Woodberry Forest, a school in Virginia whose graduates include George Bush’s son, made a pitch.

But Buyukuncu had a preference.

“Southern California,” Ayse said. “He’d seen it in the movies so many times.”

It also helped that Doker and Deniz Ari, two friends who swam for Buyukuncu’s club team Galastasaray during the summer, were also members of the Novaquatics.

“There was a lot of talk about Derya coming here, and I was more than interested,” Salo said.

Adjusting hasn’t been easy. The language was a problem at first. Although Buyukuncu studied English in Turkey, he found it far different in practice.

“I still have trouble with the slang,” he said. “People say ‘pizza’ like there’s a ‘T’ in it. I tell them there is no ‘T’ in pizza.”

Swimming was much easier.

Buyukuncu competes for the Novaquatics and the Woodbridge team. With his size and strength, he plows through the water with an almost reckless abandon.

He has now learned to refine his skill.

“He’s definitely a phenomenon,” Salo said. “Right now, he’s this big, energetic 15-year-old kid who goes out and and wins races. Once he learns to control that abundance of strength, he will be unstoppable.”

That could be as soon as this summer in Barcelona.

Awaiting him there will be Spain’s Martin Zubero, whom many consider the top backstroke specialist now. There will be American Jeff Rouse, who holds the world record in the 100 backstroke.

There, too, will be Derya Buyukuncu, the pride of Turkey.

“I thought before that this time I would make the top eight,” he said. “But I’m hoping for the top three. That would be something.”

Something worth taping.