Female rower Xu Dongxiang was born in Shaoxing, Zhejiang Province on January 15, 1983. She entered Shaoxing Youth Sports School in 1998, Zhejiang provincial rowing team in 1999, and the national rowing team in 2001.

She was the runner-up in women’s lightweight quadruple sculls at the Ninth National Games in 2001. In 2002, she won the gold medals in women’s lightweight 500m and 2,000m single sculls, and the silver medal in 6,000m single sculls at the National Spring Rowing Championships. In the same year, she also won the championship in women’s lightweight double sculls at the Pusan Asian Games. In 2003, she ranked first in the final of Group C women’s lightweight double sculls at the World Rowing Championships and won the gold medal in women’s lightweight 2,000m single sculls at the National Rowing Championships. She ranked fifth in women’s lightweight double sculls at the Athens Olympic Games in 2004, and won the gold medals in women’s lightweight 2,000m double and quadruple sculls at the National Games in Jiangsu in 2005. In 2006, she won the gold medals in women’s lightweight 1600m single sculls at the National Spring Rowing Championships, 2000m single sculls at the National Rowing Championships, 2000m double sculls at the first and second stops of the World Rowing Cup, and 2,000m double sculls at the World Rowing Championships.

She won the gold medal in women’s lightweight single sculls at the Doha Asian Games in 2006.