View source for Joji Kato

{{Infobox speed skater
| name          = Joji Kato (加藤条治)
| image         = Joji Kato (2008-11-15).jpg
| caption       = Kato at a 2008 World Cup in Thialf (Heerenveen, Netherlands)
| headercolor   = #d7ecff
|country        = {{JPN}}
|birth_date = {{birth date and age|1985|2|6|df=y}}
|birth_place    = [[Yamagata, Yamagata]]
|death_date     = 
|death_place    = 
|height 	= {{convert|1.65|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
|weight 	= {{convert|61|kg|lb st|abbr=on}}
|pb             = 
|website        =  
|titles=no
|worldcup = 
|medaltemplates={{Medal|Sport|Men's [[speed skating]]}}
{{Medal|Country|{{JPN}}}}
{{Medal|Competition|[[Speed skating at the Winter Olympics|Olympic Games]]}}
{{Medal|Bronze|[[2010 Winter Olympics|2010 Vancouver]]|[[Speed skating at the 2010 Winter Olympics – Men's 500 metres|500 m]]}}
{{Medal|Competition|[[World Speed Skating Championships|World Championships]]}}
{{Medal|Gold|[[2005 World Single Distance Speed Skating Championships|2005 Inzell]]|500 m}}
{{Medal|Silver|[[2011 World Single Distance Speed Skating Championships|2011 Inzell]]|[[2011 World Single Distance Speed Skating Championships – Men's 500 metres|500 m]]}}
{{Medal|Silver|[[2013 World Single Distance Speed Skating Championships|2013 Sochi]]|[[2011 World Single Distance Speed Skating Championships – Men's 500 metres|500 m]]}}
{{Medal|Bronze|[[2008 World Single Distance Speed Skating Championships|2008 Nagano]]|500 m}}
{{Medal|Competition|[[Speed skating at the Asian Winter Games|Asian Games]]}}
{{Medal|Gold|[[2011 Asian Winter Games|2011 Astana/Almaty]]|500 m}}
{{Medal|Bronze|[[2003 Asian Winter Games|2003 Aomori]]|500 m}}
}}

{{nihongo|'''Joji Kato'''|加藤条治|Katō Jōji}} (born 6 February 1985) is a Japanese [[long track speed skating|speedskater]] whose specialty is in the sprinting distance event of 500 metres. At the age of 17 he became the first junior speedskater to skate the 500 metres in less than 35 seconds.

Until 9 March 2007 he was the [[List of speed skating records|world record holder]] with the 34.30 he skated in [[Salt Lake City]] on 19 November 2005. He lost the world record to [[Lee Kang-seok]], who skated 34.25 in Salt Lake City.

At the age of 20, he became the 500 metres world champion at the [[2005 World Single Distance Speed Skating Championships|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 Mulder|Michel]] and [[Ronald Mulder|Ronald]]), [[Jan Smeekens]] and [[Mo Tae-bum]]. 

He is a member of the [[Sankyo (camera company)|Nidec Sankyo]] speed skating team.<ref>[http://www.nidec-sankyo.co.jp/skate/content/playershokai_inter.html Athlete Profiles - Nidec Sankyo Speed Skating Team]</ref>

== World record ==
{| class='wikitable'
|-
!Event!!Time!!Date!!Venue
|-
|[[World record progression 500 m speed skating men|500 m]]||34.30||19 November 2005||align=left|[[Utah Olympic Oval|Salt Lake City]]
|}

<small>Source: SpeedSkatingStats.com<ref name=stats>
{{cite web|title=Joji Kato
|url=http://www.speedskatingstats.com/index.php?file=skater&code=1985020601
|publisher=SpeedSkatingStats.com
|accessdate=29 August 2012}}</ref></small>

== References ==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://www.speedskatingstats.com/index.php?file=skater&code=1985020601 Joji Kato at SpeedSkatingStats.com]
*[http://www.fotos.desg.de/athletes.php?showAthletes=all&id=320 Photos of Joji Kato]
*[http://www.nbcolympics.com/speedskating_m_500/5094578/detail.html Kato names three threats for gold]
*{{cite web|title=Joji Kato|url=http://speedskatingresults.com/index.php?p=17&s=180|publisher=SpeedskatingResults.com|accessdate=29 August 2012}}

{{Footer World Single Distance Champions 500m Speed Skating Men}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Kato, Joji}}
[[Category:1985 births]]
[[Category:Japanese male speed skaters]]
[[Category:Speed skaters at the 2006 Winter Olympics]]
[[Category:Speed skaters at the 2010 Winter Olympics]]
[[Category:Speed skaters at the 2014 Winter Olympics]]
[[Category:Olympic speed skaters of Japan]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 2010 Winter Olympics]]
[[Category:Olympic medalists in speed skating]]
[[Category:Olympic bronze medalists for Japan]]
[[Category:Speed skaters at the 2003 Asian Winter Games]]
[[Category:Speed skaters at the 2007 Asian Winter Games]]
[[Category:Speed skaters at the 2011 Asian Winter Games]]
[[Category:Asian Games competitors for Japan]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 2003 Asian Winter Games]]
[[Category:Medalists at the 2011 Asian Winter Games]]
[[Category:Asian Games medalists in speed skating]]
[[Category:Asian Games gold medalists for Japan]]
[[Category:Asian Games bronze medalists for Japan]]
[[Category:Former world record holders in speed skating]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Yamagata Prefecture]]
[[Category:Living people]]