Chen Hua (born January 22, 1982 in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China) is a two-time Olympic swimmer, and former World Record holder, from China. She swam for China at the 2000 and 2004 Olympics.
In December 2001, she set a short course World Record in the 800 freestyle, which stood for two months.
She swam for China are:
- Olympics: 2000 and 2004
- World Championships: 1998
- Asian Games: 1998
- World University Games: 2003
- Short Course Worlds: 1999, 2000 and 2002
Chen was born in Ningbo, Zhejiang, Republic of China in 1923. His family was poor and he left school at the age of 12 to serve as an apprentice to a silk merchant. His father was reportedly a Shanghai-based industrialist, mainly in textiles. When Chen was 22 years old, he was already chief manager of his family business and owned several shops and factories in Shanghai and Ningbo. In 1949, Chen’s family shifted to Hong Kong and set up in business there.[2][3] He set up a successful cotton-yarn maker called Nan Fung Mill.
In 1954, he established Nan Fung Textiles, becoming chairman, and Nan Fung Development Limited.[2][4] The company also developed interests in shipping.[5]
When diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 2009, Chen handed over control of his business to his younger daughter Vivien Chen, who had been part of the business since 1981. In 2010, his wife Yang Foo Oi and elder daughter Angela, a trained architect who lived in the United States and now in Hong Kong, sued younger daughter Vivian, alleging that Chen was misled into transferring assets to a trust fund controlled by Vivian. Yang divorced him in 2011.[2]
Chen died on 17 June 2012 at the age of 89, reportedly of prostate cancer.[2][3] At his death he was ranked by Forbes as the 14th wealthiest person in Hong Kong, with a net worth of US$2.6 billion,[5][6] though earlier in his career he had been among the top ten.
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