50th Anniversary of Women's Athletics at Binghamton University
Profile: Yun Qu, Swimming, 2001-04
Brief: A native of Hangzhou, China, Yun Qu swam at Binghamton from 2001-04. She graduated Summa Cum Laude in 2005 with a degree in human development and went on to earn her master's degree in sports psychology at Ithaca College in 2006. Qu coached at Iowa State for two years before returning to Binghamton to serve as an assistant coach for four years. Since 2012, she has been on the coaching staff at Georgia Tech.
She holds the distinction of being Binghamton's first All-American during its Division I tenure. Qu was a two-time NCAA qualifier, five-time America East champion and set seven school records. With her Olympic experience, she was the most decorated international recruit to compete at Binghamton. She was inducted into the BU Athletics Hall of Fame in 2011.
Yun is the mother of two children: five-year-old daughter Lilly and one-year-old son Benji, named after former BU swim coach Benji DeMotte, who recruited Qu to Binghamton.
Accomplishments on Qu's Hall of Fame plaque
Qu came to campus as a transfer from Shen Zhen University and arrived as the most prominent international-level athlete in the school's history. She had been a member of the Chinese national team from 1993-2000 and during her eight years representing China, Qu was ranked among the top 10 in the world in both the 100 and 200 butterfly. At the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, she placed fourth in the 200 fly, missing out on a medal by less than half a second. Qu won a pair of silver medals in the 100M and 200M fly at the 1994 FINA World Championships to help China capture the world title. She won 10 Chinese national championships and was the top-ranked swimmer in the world in the 200 fly from 1992-93.
In her three-year career at Binghamton, Qu was a two-time NCAA qualifier in the butterfly events and became the school's first Division I All-American with her 13th-place finish in the 200Y fly at the 2002 NCAA Championships. That year, she was named both the America East Swimmer of the Year and Binghamton's "Athlete of the Year." In 2002-03, Qu repeated as America East champion in the 200 fly and earned a second straight trip to the NCAA Championship. One year later, she made it three in a row with another 200 fly conference crown. In all, Qu won five conference titles and set seven school records.
She received America East Scholar-Athlete and ECAC Merit Medal honors and was awarded the University's John Bilos Award in 2004.
Catching up with Qu ...
Share some of your international swim background growing up and what factors led to you coming to school at Binghamton?
My international swim career began on 1993, when I was ranked No. 1 in the 200 butterfly and No. 2 in the 100 butterfly in the world. I competed at the 1994 and 1998 Swimming World Championships and won two silver medals in the individual events and one gold medal as a part of the 400 medley relay team. The first time I came to the United States was in 1996. I took part in the Olympic Games in Atlanta and finished fourth in the 200 butterfly. The competition was held at the Georgia Tech campus and I was impressed with the scale of collegiate sports here in the States. When I started looking at universities, I was recruited by Benji DeMotte. He was very personable and understood my needs. He told me that Binghamton University had just elevated to NCAA Division I, and I would have the chance to become the first athlete to compete for the school at the NCAA Division I Championships. I later earned All-America honors at the end of my first season at Binghamton.
What was your collegiate experience like? What are some of your favorite memories?
I had a great experience swimming, studying and later working for the University. The campus was diverse and I never had any problems being an international female student athlete. Being there for the end of the transition from Division III to Division I, I witnessed the development of the athletics department. The new facility, staff growth, media coverage of sports on campus and in the town. It was an exciting time. I was lucky to have many friends from the team, school and local community as my support system while I was a student-athlete. Everything was foreign to me but with their help, I quickly found my way to thrive. My fondest memory in Binghamton was being part of the coaching staff that earned America East "Coach of the Year" honors in 2011.
What skills and lessons from your own athletics background do you utilize in your coaching career now?
I contribute most of my career success to my coaches. They are always very professional and taught me all the skills I need to be good, but more importantly, they shared their love for the sport with me. And that’s what I try to do with my swimmers now.
Anything else you want to share about the 50th celebration?
I am very honored to be part of the celebration. I would like to think the sports world has everything to offer to my children, regardless of their gender, race, sexuality when they grow up. My biggest challenge right now, however, is to teach my daughter how to swim! Of course, Lilly has to be willing to put her face in the water first!
