Cao Yuan (; born 7 February 1995) is a Chinese
diver and an Olympic gold medalist, having won three golds, one silver and one bronze in the Olympics. He has also won golds in diving at the
World Championships
A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...
and
World Cups
A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...
.
Early life
Cao Yuan was born on 7 February 1995 in Hunan province. Cao Yuan started diving at age 5. His mother wanted him to learn discipline so enrolled him in diving classes.
His life motto is "Go your own way and see your own scenery. Be calm for life's ups and downs."
Career
He competed at the
2012 Summer Olympics
The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
in the
Men's synchronized 10-metre platform, winning the gold medal. He won the gold medal at
2010 Asian Games
The 2010 Asian Games (), officially known as the XVI Asian Games () and also known as Guangzhou 2010 (), was a regional multi-sport event celebrated from November 12 to November 27, 2010 in Guangzhou, Guangdong, China, although several events ...
in Men's 10-meter platform at the age of 15.
Cao Yuan is the only diver in history to win 3 gold medals in a single World Diving Series event by winning gold medals in 3m synchro, 10m synchro, and 10m individual events of the 2014 World Diving Series in Canada.
Cao Yuan together with Yue Lin are the only divers to ever win two World Series gold medals on the same day of the competition by winning the 3m synchro and 10m synchro events on 30 May 2014.
In 2015, he partnered with
Qin Kai on the men's 3m synchro springboard at the
World Championships
A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...
in
Kazan
Kazan ( ; rus, Казань, p=kɐˈzanʲ; tt-Cyrl, Казан, ''Qazan'', IPA: ɑzan is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Tatarstan in Russia. The city lies at the confluence of the Volga and the Kazanka rivers, covering a ...
and won gold.
At the
2016 Summer Olympics
The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...
in Rio, Cao led throughout the competition in the
men's 3m springboard event, and won gold with a score of 547.60. He also won bronze in the
3m springboard synchronized dive with Qin Kai.
In 2017, at the
World Championships
A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...
in
Budapest
Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...
, Cao won silver pairing with
Xie Siyi
Xie Siyi (; born 28 March 1996) is a Chinese diver. He has won four gold medals at the World Championships and two Olympic gold medals.
Career
Xie's previous main event was 10m platform and his partner was Chen Aisen. However, due to a seriou ...
in the 3m synchro. In the
2018 World Cup
The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awarded the hosting righ ...
, he won a gold in the 3m synchro with Xie, as well as a silver in the individual 3m springboard.
At the
2019 World Aquatics Championships
The 2019 World Aquatics Championships were the 18th FINA World Aquatics Championships, held in Gwangju, South Korea from 12 to 28 July 2019. The city had previously hosted the 2015 Summer Universiade aquatics events in the same venues. held in
Gwangju
Gwangju () is South Korea's sixth-largest metropolis. It is a designated metropolitan city under the direct control of the central government's Home Minister. The city was also the capital of South Jeolla Province until the provincial office ...
, South Korea, Cao Yuan won gold in both the men's synchronised diving events. In the
3m synchro with Xie, the pair won with their last two dives, and he also won with
Chen Aisen
Chen Aisen (, born 22 October 1995) is a Chinese diver. He is a double gold medal winner at the 2016 Summer Olympics. He won gold in the men's synchronised 10m platform competition with diving partner Lin Yue, as well as gold in the men's indivi ...
in the
10m synchro.
At the
2020 Summer Olympics
The , officially the and also known as , was an international multi-sport event held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some preliminary events that began on 21 July.
Tokyo was selected as the host city during the ...
in Tokyo, Cao and teammate Aisen Chen won silver in men's synchronized 10m platform. He also won gold in individual 10m platform with 582.35 points.
Accolades
In 2014, he was named the
Male Diver of the Year by the International Swimming Federation (FINA). He was again given the accolade in 2018.
He received the 4 May Youth Medal of Beijing in the People's Republic of China in 2014.
See also
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China at the 2012 Summer Olympics
The People's Republic of China competed at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, United Kingdom, between 27 July and 12 August 2012. This was the nation's ninth appearance at the Summer Olympics since its debut in 1952. A total of 396 Chinese athl ...
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Cao, Yuan
1995 births
Living people
2016 Olympic gold medalists for China
2016 Olympic bronze medalists for China
Asian Games medalists in diving
Asian Games gold medalists for China
Asian Games silver medalists for China
Chinese male divers
Divers at the 2010 Asian Games
Divers at the 2014 Asian Games
Divers at the 2018 Asian Games
Divers at the 2012 Summer Olympics
Divers at the 2016 Summer Olympics
Divers at the 2020 Summer Olympics
Medalists at the 2010 Asian Games
Medalists at the 2014 Asian Games
Medalists at the 2018 Asian Games
Medalists at the 2012 Summer Olympics
Medalists at the 2016 Summer Olympics
Medalists at the 2020 Summer Olympics
Olympic divers of China
Olympic medalists in diving
Olympic silver medalists for China
Sportspeople from Beijing
World Aquatics Championships medalists in diving
20th-century Chinese people
21st-century Chinese people