Biography

Sophia (Yunyi) Chen is a young writer, educator, and competitive athlete whose work bridges creative storytelling, analytical inquiry, and a decade of elite swimming. She has trained competitively since age seven, balancing 20+hour training weeks and early-morning practices with rigorous academics. Her long commutes to and from practice also cultivated an unexpected passion: observing people and finding stories in the ordinary moments of daily life.

Sophia’s creative writing has earned recognition from the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, including a Silver Key and Honourable Mention. Her work has also received a Silver Award in The Queen’s Commonwealth Essay Competition and an international Commendation for an Outstanding Submission in the John Locke Institute Essay Competition. She was additionally selected for the Iowa Young Writers’ Studio, where she developed her craft alongside an international cohort of young writers and completed a ten-page creative manuscript.

Outside academics and swimming, Sophia writes, plays alto saxophone, rock climbs, hikes, and explores the outdoors. Across these pursuits, she is drawn to the same question: how can careful observation—whether of data, people, or the natural world—reveal stories that might otherwise go unnoticed?

Her interest in storytelling extends beyond fiction. Sophia independently explores the intersection of statistics, human behavior, and narrative, applying analytical methods to questions in sports and performance. This combination of quantitative inquiry and creative expression has become central to how she understands and communicates ideas.

As an educator, Sophia has designed SAT tutoring programs and worked with students through platforms including the College Board and Schoolhouse.world. She has also created educational video content that has reached more than 250,000 viewers, translating complex concepts into accessible explanations for her peers.