Special bond

Yan and Sun's bond was forged during their days in the Hubei provincial team. When Sun earned his first call-up aged 12, Yan was already an established member of the squad — hence "captain Yan", which has stuck ever since.

"I was super nervous on my first day with the provincial team. I knew no one there and they were all bigger and older than me. I saw captain Yan the first day, and, honestly speaking, I dared not to speak a word to him," recalled Sun.

"But later on, when I got to know him more, I realized that he was super nice to all the young swimmers. Well, he can be serious too. When I was young, sometimes I would pretend to go to the bathroom for a very long time to avoid training. In those cases, our coach would send captain Yan to find me and take me back to the pool."

Sun has proven himself as a key addition to the squad, according to Yan, who praised the youngster for his focus and determination in the pool.

"I just had that feeling that he has massive ambition since he was a boy," Yan added.

Sun made his Olympic debut at the Tokyo Games in 2021.

Yan won a silver in the mixed 4x100m medley relay in the Japanese capital, and sped to China's best Olympic result in the men's 100m breaststroke, finishing sixth.

But for both swimmers, the most memorable moment was not in the pool.

"What touched me the most was not the competitions in Tokyo. The most unforgettable moment was my birthday on Aug 1 when we were both in the Olympic village," recalled Sun.

"That night when captain Yan celebrated my birthday with me. We had nothing there, and he borrowed a lighter from the staff in the Olympic village, and used it as a birthday candle for me to make wishes. So I just hope that at the Paris Olympics next year, we can still be there competing together. "