Yang Junxuan is a competitive swimmer who represents China internationally. She is a 2021 Olympian and Olympic champion as well as a world and Asian champion.
International Career
2018 Summer Youth Olympics (Buenos Aires, Argentina)
Yang had a breakout meet at the Summer Youth Olmypics, earning gold as a part of China’s 400 free and mixed medley relays. She also won individual silver in the 100 free (54.43) and bronze in the 50 (25.47) and 200 (1:58.05) freestyles.
2018 Asian Games
Yang kept her momentum rolling into her first Asian Games, where she helped China to gold in the 800 free relay as well as silver in the 400 free relay. She also earned individual silvers in the 100 free (54.17) and 200 free (1:57.48).
2018 World Short Course Championships (Hangzhou, China)
In her home world championships, Yang picked up a hat trick of medals with China’s relays, earning gold in the 800 free relay, silver in the 400 medley relay, and bronze in the 400 free relay.
2020 Olympic Games
In Tokyo, Yang started things off in the 200 free. In the final, she ended up placing 4th (1:55.01), just outside of medaling but swimming a personal best. In the 100 free, she went a best time in the prelims (53.02), but scratched the semifinal to save herself for China’s 4×200 free relay, a gamble that paid off.
In the final of the relay, Yang led off in a huge personal best of 1:54.37, putting China in a lead that they maintained through to a win, leading 3 teams who were all under the world record. China earned gold with their WR setting time of 7:40.33.
2022 World Championships
Yang started her meet in the 400 free relay, splitting 52.7 for China on the 3rd leg to help them to a 4th place finish. Individually, Yang had the 200 free up next, moving through prelims and semis easily. In the final, Yang swam a strong race, going out hard and holding on to win her first world title, touching for the win in 1:54.92.
2023 World Aquatics Championships (Fukuoka, Japan)
While a lot of the Chinese team had a fantastic meet, Yang was far more subdued in her performance. She was solid on a relay, helping China break the Asian record and take bronze in the 400 free relay with a 53.53 split. In the 100 individually, Yang eked through prelims with a 54.45 and qualified for the final 8th with a 53.67. She remained 8th in the final with a 54.09.
2022(3) Asian Games (Hangzhou, China)
On night 1, Yang helped get the Chinese 400 free relay off to a strong start with a 53.86 leadoff. The previous Asian Games Record stood at the 3:36.52 Japan clocked in 2018 but the Chinese quartet undercut that mark by 2.5 seconds.
She took another relay gold in the mixed 400 medley relay, anchoring in a speedy 52.52 to carry China to another gold. That relay of Xu Jiayu (51.91), Qin Haiyang (57.25), Zhang Yufei (56.05), and Yang was just .15 seconds off the World record of 3:37.58 set by Great Britain in 2021.
Her sole individual medal came in the 100 free where she netted silver with a 53.11, nearly a second back of Siobhan Haughey. She had a shot at another gold in the 400 medley relay but a DQ by the prelims squad closed that door.
2024 Olympic Games (Paris, France)
Yang had a prolific Games, netting 4 relay medals for China. She led off the Chinese 400 free relay in a huge 52.48, putting them in 2nd. The US managed to retake the silver position but China definitely won bronze in a new Asian record of 3:30.30, just .10 second behind the US. Similarly, she put China into 2nd in the 800 free relay with a huge 1:54.52 leadoff and the US caught back up to leave the Chinese in bronze. Her biggest relay split came on the anchor of the mixed 400 medley relay, where she posted a 51.96 but was just out split by Torri Huske and ended up with silver. Both China and the US were under the former world record, meaning a new Asian standard for the Chinese team. She closed out her meet with a 52.11 100 free anchor on the 400 medley relay, helping the Chinese women to another relay bronze.
Individually, Yang finished 6th in the 100 free with a 52.82 and 5th in the 200 free with a 1:55.38.
