Joji Kato
This Yamagata, Yamagata | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Weight | 61 kg (134 lb; 9.6 st) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sport | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Country | Japan | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sport | Speed skating | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Joji Kato (加藤条治, Katō Jōji) (born 6 February 1985) is a Japanese
Until 9 March 2007 he was the
At the age of 20, he became the 500 metres world champion at the 2005 World Single Distance Championships, leaving behind Hiroyasu Shimizu and Jeremy Wotherspoon. After this achievement he was considered to be one of the favourites for achieving a medal at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin. Prior to that 500 metre race, he named three skaters as his toughest competition: Jeremy Wotherspoon of Canada, Joey Cheek of the United States, and Dmitry Dorofeyev of Russia. Cheek and Dorofeyev won gold and silver, respectively, while Kato finished in sixth place. He was also beaten by his own countryman, Yūya Oikawa, who was fourth.
He represented Japan at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver where he won bronze at men's 500 metres.
At the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, Russia, he again represented Japan and finished 5th in the 500 m with a combined time over two runs of 69.74 and a fastest single time of 34.77 behind the Mulder brothers (Michel and Ronald), Jan Smeekens and Mo Tae-bum.
He is a member of the
World record
Event | Time | Date | Venue |
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500 m | 34.30 | 19 November 2005 | Salt Lake City |
Source: SpeedSkatingStats.com[2]
References
- ^ "Athlete Profiles - Nidec Sankyo Speed Skating Team". Archived from the original on 2020-10-28. Retrieved 2014-12-04.
- ^ "Joji Kato". SpeedSkatingStats.com. Retrieved 29 August 2012.
External links
- Joji Kato at SpeedSkatingStats.com
- Photos of Joji Kato
- Kato names three threats for gold
- "Joji Kato". SpeedskatingResults.com. Retrieved 29 August 2012.