Male rower Chen Changchuan was born in Ninghai, Zhejiang Province in 1966. He was selected to Zhejiang provincial rowing team in 1984 and the national training team in 1988.

In 1989, he won the gold medal in men’s coxed four at the Third Asian Rowing Championships.

In 1990, he won the gold medal in men’s coxed eight at the Beijing Asian Games.