連中三元

1. • to rank first in the imperial examinations at the provincial capital, the national capital and the palace successively

     old

2. • to achieve three successes in a row (three matches in a row, three goals in a match etc)

     sports etc

Character by character

• 連(lián)surname Lian
• 中(zhòng)hit a target
• 三(sān)surname San
• 元(yuán)surname Yuan