Gu Yun won first place for Trio Dance in China’s Seventh Annual Peach and Plum Cup Dance Competition in 2003 and the coveted Gardener Award (pedagogy) in the same competition the following year. He took first place for Solo Dance and won the Teachers’ Award at the Shandong Province Dance Competition, first place for Trio Dance in Beijing’s Eighth Annual Dance Competition, and first place in China’s First National Dance Competition for University Students. He studied at Beijing Academy of Dance, where he specialized in classical Chinese dance.