Yuna Kato
Japanese badminton player (born 2002)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Yuna Kato (加藤 佑奈, Katō Yūna; born 26 June 2002) is a Japanese badminton player.[2]
Kato at the 2022 Taipei Open | |||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born | 26 June 2002 | ||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.66 m (5 ft 5 in)[1] | ||||||||||||||
| Sport | |||||||||||||||
| Country | Japan | ||||||||||||||
| Sport | Badminton | ||||||||||||||
| Women's doubles | |||||||||||||||
| Highest ranking | 18 (WD with Rui Hirokami) (23 May 2023) | ||||||||||||||
| BWF profile | |||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Career
2022: First World Tour title and world No. 25 ranking
In 2022, Yuna Kato partnered with Rui Hirokami in women's doubles. On the BWF World Tour, they were runners-up at two tournaments: the Taipei Open (Super 300), where they lost to Ng Tsz Yau and Tsang Hiu Yan of Hong Kong, and the Canada Open (Super 100), where they were defeated by fellow Japanese pair Rena Miyaura and Ayako Sakuramoto.[3][4][5] Kato and Hirokami won their first BWF World Tour title at the Indonesia Masters Super 100, defeating Miyaura and Sakuramoto in the final.[6] The pair also won two International Challenge titles: the Mexican International and the Belgian International.[7] Kato was part of the Japanese team that won a bronze medal at the Asia Team Championships in Selangor. Starting the year unranked, their performances led to a significant rise in their world ranking, reaching World No. 25 by 26 December 2022.
Achievements
BWF World Tour (1 title, 4 runners-up)
The BWF World Tour, which was announced on 19 March 2017 and implemented in 2018,[8] is a series of elite badminton tournaments sanctioned by the Badminton World Federation (BWF). The BWF World Tour is divided into levels of World Tour Finals, Super 1000, Super 750, Super 500, Super 300 (part of the HSBC World Tour), and the BWF Tour Super 100.[9]
Women's doubles
| Year | Tournament | Level | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Taipei Open | Super 300 |  Rui Hirokami |
 Ng Tsz Yau Tsang Hiu Yan |
15–21, 21–18, 19–21 |  Runner-up |
[3][4] |
| 2022 | Canada Open | Super 100 | Rui Hirokami |
Rena Miyaura Ayako Sakuramoto |
13–21, 8–21 | Runner-up |
[5][10] |
| 2022 | Indonesia Masters | Super 100 | Rui Hirokami |
Rena Miyaura Ayako Sakuramoto |
23–21, 21–18 |  Winner |
[6] |
| 2023 | Korea Masters | Super 300 | Rui Hirokami |
 Jeong Na-eun Kim Hye-jeong |
12–21, 19–21 | Runner-up |
[11] |
| 2024 | Orléans Masters | Super 300 | Rui Hirokami |
 Meilysa Trias Puspita Sari Rachel Allessya Rose |
12–21, 18–21 | Runner-up |
[12] |
BWF International Challenge/Series (2 titles, 1 runner-up)
Women's doubles
| Year | Tournament | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Mexican International | Rui Hirokami |
Ayako Sakuramoto Hinata Suzuki |
15–21, 21–19, 21–17 | Winner |
[13] |
| 2022 | Belgian International | Rui Hirokami |
 Chang Ching-hui Yang Ching-tun |
21–7, 21–15 | Winner |
[14] |
| 2025 | Malaysia International | Hina Osawa |
Jeon Jui Kim Ha-na |
10–15, 10–15 | Runner-up |
[15] |
| 2026 | Vietnam International | Miki Kanehiro |
 Gronya Somerville Josephine Wu |
0–0, 0–0 |
- BWF International Challenge tournament
BWF Junior International (1 title)
Girls' doubles
| Year | Tournament | Partner | Opponent | Score | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | German Junior | Rui Hirokami |
Lee So-yul Yoo A-yeon |
21–13, 21–14 | Winner |
[16] |
- BWF Junior International Grand Prix tournament
