Xu Jiayu (first from the left) was born in Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province in August 1995.

In 2014, he broke the national records in men’s 100-meter, 50-meter, and 200-meter backstroke at the National Swimming Championships. At the Incheon Asian Games held in South Korea, he won the gold medal with his three teammates in men’s 4×100m medley relay with a time of 3:31.37 that broke the Olympic record. On August 9, 2016, he won the silver medal in men’s 100m backstroke at the 2016 Rio Summer Olympic Games. In August 2018, he won gold medals in five events at the 2018 Jakarta Asian Games: men’s 50m, 100m, and 200m backstroke, mixed 4×100m medley relay, and men’s 4×100m medley relay. On November 11, he won the championship of 100m backstroke at the FINA Short-course World Cup (Tokyo) and broke the world record with a time of 48.88. On July 23, 2019, he won the gold medal in men’s 100m backstroke at the FINA World Championships.

On July 31, 2021, Xu Jiayu won the silver medal with his teammates in mixed 4×100m medley relay and he also secured the 5th place in men’s 100m backstroke at the Tokyo Olympic Games.