is a Japanese badminton player who competes in women's doubles. She is a former member of the Japanese national team and plays for the Kumamoto Saishunkan badminton team. Kato reached a career-high world ranking of No. 18 alongside her former partner, Rui Hirokami. She won her first BWF World Tour title at the 2022 Indonesia Masters Super 100. She was also a runner-up in three Super 300 events: 2022 Taipei Open, 2023 Korea Masters and 2024 Orléans Masters. She was part of the Japanese team that secured a bronze medal at the 2022 Asia Team Championships.

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. Kato and Hirokami won their first BWF World Tour title at the Indonesia Masters Super 100, defeating Miyaura and Sakuramoto in the final. The pair also won two International Challenge titles: the Mexican International and the Belgian International. 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.

2026 During the 2026 season, Kato competed in women's doubles alongside partner Miki Kanehiro. The pair achieved consistent results on the International Challenge circuit, reaching four finals throughout the year. Their first final appearance of the season occurred in March at the Vietnam International, where they finished as runners-up to Gronya Somerville and Josephine Wu. In July, Kato and Kanehiro reached the final of the Northern Marianas Open, again securing a runner-up position. In August, the duo reached the final of the inaugural Philippine International, where they were defeated by the Indian pair Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand. Additionally, they were runners-up at the Malaysia International, losing the final to fellow Japanese players Mikoto Aiso and Momoha Niimi.

Achievements BWF World Tour (1 title, 4 runners-up) The BWF World Tour, which was announced on 19 March 2017 and implemented in 2018, 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.

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 2022 Canada Open Super 100 Rui Hirokami Rena Miyaura Ayako Sakuramoto 13–21, 8–21 Runner-up 2022 Indonesia Masters Super 100 Rui Hirokami Rena Miyaura Ayako Sakuramoto 23–21, 21–18 Winner 2023 Korea Masters Super 300 Rui Hirokami Jeong Na-eun Kim Hye-jeong 12–21, 19–21 Runner-up 2024 Orléans Masters Super 300 Rui Hirokami Meilysa Trias Puspita Sari Rachel Allessya Rose 12–21, 18–21 Runner-up

BWF International Challenge/Series (2 titles, 5 runners-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 2022 Belgian International Rui Hirokami Chang Ching-hui Yang Ching-tun 21–7, 21–15 Winner 2025 Malaysia International Hina Osawa Jeon Jui Kim Ha-na 10–15, 10–15 Runner-up 2026 Vietnam International Miki Kanehiro Gronya Somerville Josephine Wu 21–16, 19–21, 22–24 Runner-up 2026 Northern Marianas Open Miki Kanehiro Moon In-seo Park Seul 16–21, 21–17, 15–21 Runner-up 2026 Philippine International Miki Kanehiro Treesa Jolly Gayatri Gopichand 21–16, 4–21, 17–21 Runner-up 2026 Malaysia International Miki Kanehiro Mikoto Aiso Momoha Niimi 17–21, 15–21 Runner-up 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

BWF Junior International Grand Prix tournament

Record against selected opponents Record against year-end Finals finalists, World Championships semi-finalists, and Olympic quarter-finalists. Accurate as of 23 August 2026.

Rui Hirokami

Players Liu Shengshu & Tan Ning 2 0 2 –2 Zhang Shuxian & Zheng Yu 2 0 2 –2 Treesa Jolly & Gayatri Gopichand 1 1 0 +1 Yuki Fukushima & Sayaka Hirota 1 0 1 –1 Mayu Matsumoto & Wakana Nagahara 2 0 2 –2

Players Pearly Tan & Thinaah Muralitharan 2 0 2 –2 Baek Ha-na & Lee So-hee 2 0 2 –2 Kim So-yeong & Kong Hee-yong 1 0 1 –1 Benyapa Aimsaard & Nuntakarn Aimsaard 1 0 1 –1

References

External links

Yuna Kato at Saishunkan Badminton Yuna Kato at Smash and Net TV