Learn Turkish: İkinci gümüş madalya aldı. - The second one got the silver medal.

The root is iki (two). To make ordinal numbers like 'first' or 'second', we add the suffix -(I)ncI. Because iki already ends in a vowel, the suffix drops its first vowel and becomes -nci, giving us ikinci.

Why does ikinci mean 'the second one' rather than just 'second'?

In Turkish, ordinal numbers and adjectives can be used as nouns all by themselves if the context is clear. Since ikinci is the subject of the sentence and isn't followed by a noun, it acts as a noun meaning 'the second one' or 'the second-place winner'.

Why doesn't madalya have the specific direct object (accusative) ending? Doesn't the English translation say 'the silver medal'?

In English we usually say 'got the silver medal', but Turkish treats this as a general achievement, similar to saying 'won silver'. Because it is not pointing to one specific, previously discussed physical medal, madalya stays in its plain form instead of becoming madalyayı.

I learned that almak means 'to buy'. Why is it used here?

almak is a very versatile verb whose core meaning is 'to take', 'to get', or 'to receive'. While it translates to 'to buy' when you are shopping, in the context of an award or competition, madalya almak means 'to receive a medal' or 'to win a medal'.