It appears Joseph Schooling is also a fan of Chinese cupping.

A photo the Olympic gold medallist put up on social media on June 28, 2021, showed the 26-year-old partially submerged in the pool with visible purplish-red round bruises all over his upper-left torso.

Those bruises are clearly the result of undergoing some traditional Chinese medicine treatment.

What is Chinese cupping?

Cupping therapy, also known as Ba Guan in this part of the world, is supposedly a healing technique widely available in massage parlours and TCM clinics.

The suction produced by the cups placed on the affected areas, is believed to mobilise blood flow in order to promote healing.

It can be used to treat pain, deep scar tissues in the muscles and connective tissue, muscle knots and swelling, even though the actual science as to why it should work is unclear.

Michael Phelps also a fan of cupping

Previously, during the 2016 Rio Olympics, Michael Phelps, the American swimmer and legend who has amassed 23 Olympic gold medals, turned heads after he was seen covered in round bruises all over his body.

Images of his bruises were broadcast worldwide, with some speculating if he was suffering from an outbreak of sorts on his skin.

The Tokyo Olympics will start on Friday, July 23, after it was postponed for a year.

Who will Schooling need to beat?

All eyes will be on Schooling in the 100m butterfly event.

This Olympics could very well be the Singaporean swimmer's last outing.

The last time Schooling provided a glimpse of where he stood in his pet event before Tokyo was during the 100m fly at the ISCA International Senior Cup in March 2021.

Schooling finished with a time of 52.93 seconds, sandwiched between Americans Caeleb Dressel (51.69) and Jack Conger (53.05).

Schooling's personal best and Olympic-winning effort in 2016 was 50.39 seconds.

Dressel, who currently holds the 100m butterfly world record holder, finished in 49.50 seconds before.

Top photos via Joseph Schooling & NBC