Sun Yang is a Chinese Olympic and world-record-holding competitive swimmer. In 2012, Sun became the first Chinese man to win an Olympic gold medal in swimming. Sun is the first male swimmer in history to earn Olympic and World Championship gold medals at every freestyle distance between 200 and 1500 metres. A three-time Olympic gold medallist and eleven-time world champion, he is the most decorated Chinese swimmer in history. In 2017, NBC Sports described him as "arguably the greatest freestyle swimmer of all time".

Sun competed for China at the 2008 Summer Olympics. In 2010, he won the 1500 metre freestyle at the Asian Games, setting a new Asian record. At the 2011 World Championships, he beat the 1500 metre freestyle world record, which was previously held by Grant Hackett in 2001 and the longest-held world record in swimming at the time. Sun won gold medals in the 400 and 1500 metre freestyle at the 2012 Summer Olympics. At the 2013 World Championships, he became the second swimmer, after Hackett, to win gold medals in all three long distance freestyle events (400, 800, and 1500 metres) in a single World Championship.

At the 2016 Summer Olympics, Sun won a gold medal in the 200 metre freestyle and a silver medal in the 400 metre freestyle. By winning the 200 metre freestyle, he became the first swimmer in history to win Olympic gold medals in the 200, 400, and 1500 metre freestyle events. At the 2017 World Championships, he won his first world title in the 200 metre freestyle, setting a new Asian record. He won his third consecutive title in the 400 metre freestyle, the second swimmer to do so after Ian Thorpe in 2003. In 2018, Sun won gold medals in every freestyle event (200, 400, 800, and 1500 metres) at the Asian Games, as well as silver medals in two relay events. In 2019, he successfully defended his titles in the 200 and 400 metre freestyle events at the World Championships. As of 2020, Sun Yang's 1500 metre world record remains the only Men's Individual Freestyle long course world record achieved without the use of the high-tech swimwear that controversially dominated swimming victories and records in the 2008-09 seasons. Edit Biography