Learn Farsi: قهرمان فوق‌العاده شنا می‌کند.

In Farsi, you can often use a bare adjective directly as an adverb of manner to describe how an action is performed. By placing فوق‌العاده right before the verb, it acts as an adverb meaning "superbly" or "exceptionally," without needing any special suffix like "-ly" in English.

Where exactly does the adverb go when there is a compound verb like شنا می‌کند?

The adverb usually goes right before the non-verbal part of the compound verb. Here, شنا کردن (to swim) acts as a single verb unit, so فوق‌العاده goes before شنا. You generally do not put the adverb between the noun and the auxiliary verb (می‌کند).

What is the literal structure of فوق‌العاده? It looks like a complex word.

It is an Arabic phrase borrowed into Farsi. فوق means "above" or "beyond," and العاده relates to "ordinary" or "habitual" (like the Farsi word عادت for "habit"). Together, it literally means "beyond the ordinary."

Is قهرمان only used for a sports "champion"?

While it definitely means "champion" in sports or competitions, قهرمان is also the standard Farsi word for "hero," whether referring to a real-life hero or the main protagonist in a movie or book.