"[3] Cao Yuan is the only diver in history to win 3 gold medals in a single World Diving Series event by winning gold medals in 3m synchro, 10m synchro, and 10m individual events of the 2014 World Diving Series in Canada.

In 2015, he partnered with Qin Kai on the men's 3m synchro springboard at the World Championships in Kazan and won gold.

[4] At the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio, Cao led throughout the competition in the men's 3m springboard event, and won gold with a score of 547.60.

[7] At the 2019 World Aquatics Championships held in Gwangju, South Korea, Cao Yuan won gold in both the men's synchronised diving events.

[9] At the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Cao and teammate Aisen Chen won silver in men's synchronized 10m platform.