In a sentence

Her career has taken more turns than most champions’: from world No. 1, to illness-forced exile, to the top of the podium again as a self-described “part-time athlete.”

Playing style

  • Balanced two-winged loops with fine placement control in rallies
  • Excellent rhythm; nudges opponents into passivity one ball at a time
  • Smooth defense-to-attack conversion and steady nerves on the big points

Career and key moments

A pillar of the Chinese team through the Tokyo cycle, she won the 2017 Women’s World Cup, climbed to world No. 1 and collected seven world titles. Around 2020 an immune-system illness pushed her out of the game, toward studies and the family business. In 2024 she obtained residency through Macao, China’s talent program and returned as a Macao, China player — starting from the lowest-tier feeder events, rebuilding her ranking point by point. At the 2025 United States Grand Smash she beat world No. 1 Sun Yingsha in the round of 16, took out Mima Ito in the semifinals, and in the final trailed 0–2 against Chen Yi before reeling off four straight to lift her first Grand Smash title since coming back.

Legacy

Her path redefines “champion” as the ability to come back across a valley. To any athlete felled by illness or a stalled career, she is a concrete piece of hope.

Remember in one line: A real champion is not necessarily the one standing highest, but the one willing to step back on court after falling.