# ISU Challenger Series

The ISU Challenger Series is a series of international figure skating competitions. Established by the International Skating Union in the 2014–15 season, it is a group of senior-level events ranked below the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating. Each event consists of at least three disciplines out of four (men's singles, ladies' singles, pair skating, and ice dancing), and is required to take place between August 1 and December 15.
The ISU Challenger Series Synchronized Skating is a separate competition series in the discipline of synchronized skating.

## History

The ISU Council decided to create the series at its February 2014 meeting. Eleven competitions were selected in June 2014. The Triglav Trophy dropped out by October 10, 2014, resulting in a series composed of ten events. The Nebelhorn Trophy, Finlandia Trophy, Ondrej Nepela Memorial, and Golden Spin of Zagreb are the "core group". The event criteria were published in April 2014, and revised in August 2014.
The notice on the ISU Challenger Series Synchronized Skating was announced on May 10, 2019, which is for the discipline of synchronized skating and is held separately from the other ISU Challenger Series.
The Asian Open Classic was planned to be included in the 2019–20 season, but ISU transferred the event holding right back to Asian Open Trophy later.
In the 2020–21 season, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was decided to hold the Challenger competitions as individual events, rather than as a series. Entry limits per country were also removed.

## Events

| Competition | Nation | 14–15 | 15–16 | 16–17 | 17–18 | 18–19 | 19–20 | 20–21 | 21–22 | 22–23 | 23–24 | 24–25 |
| Asian Open Trophy | Varies | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | Yes | Yes | Cancelled | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event |
| Autumn Classic International | Canada | Yes | Not a Challenger Series event | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Cancelled | Yes | — | Yes | — |
| Budapest Trophy | Hungary | — | — | — | — | — | — | Yes | Not a Challenger Series event | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Cranberry Cup International | United States | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | Yes |
| Denis Ten Memorial Challenge | Kazakhstan | — | — | — | — | — | Not a Challenger Series event | Cancelled | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Denkova-Staviski Cup | Bulgaria | Not a Challenger Series event | Yes | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | — | — | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event |
| Finlandia Trophy | Finland | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Cancelled | Yes | Yes | Yes | A Grand Prix event |
| Golden Spin of Zagreb | Croatia | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Cancelled | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Ice Challenge | Austria | Yes | Yes | — | Not a Challenger Series event | — | — | — | Yes | Yes | Cancelled | Not a Challenger Series event |
| Ice Star | Belarus | — | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | Yes | Not a Challenger Series event | Yes | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | — | — | — |
| Inge Solar Memorial | Austria | — | — | — | — | Yes | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| John Nicks Pairs Challenge | United States | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | Yes |
| Lombardia Trophy | Italy | Yes | Not a Challenger Series event | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | — | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Mordovian Ornament | Russia | — | Yes | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Nebelhorn Trophy | Germany | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Nepela Memorial | Slovakia | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Cancelled | Cancelled | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Tallinn Trophy | Estonia | Not a Challenger Series event | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Not a Challenger Series event | — | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | Yes |
| Trophée Métropole Nice Côte d'Azur | France | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | — | — | — | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | Yes |
| U.S. International Classic | United States | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | — | Not a Challenger Series event | Yes | — | — |
| Volvo Open Cup | Latvia | Yes | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | — | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event | Not a Challenger Series event |
| Warsaw Cup | Poland | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Not a Challenger Series event | Yes | Cancelled | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
* ↑ Held as individual events rather than as a series due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

## Top three finishers per season

Each skater or team is permitted to compete in up to three ISU Challenger Series events. Their two highest scores determine their final ranking.

### Men's singles

| Season | First | Second | Third |
| 2014–15 | Michal Březina | Alexander Petrov | Konstantin Menshov |
| 2015–16 | Jason Brown | Max Aaron | Mikhail Kolyada |
| 2016–17 | Jason Brown | Alexander Petrov | Max Aaron |
| 2017–18 | Mikhail Kolyada | Sergei Voronov | Moris Kvitelashvili |
| 2018–19 | Mikhail Kolyada | Cha Jun-hwan | Jason Brown |
| 2019–20 | Dmitri Aliev | Daniel Grassl | Sota Yamamoto |
| 2021–22 | Petr Gumennik | Keegan Messing | Mark Kondratiuk |
| 2022–23 | Kévin Aymoz | Lukas Britschgi | Matteo Rizzo |
| 2023–24 | Lukas Britschgi | Jin Boyang | Nika Egadze |
| 2024–25 | Daniel Grassl | Mihhail Selevko | Nika Egadze |

### Women's singles

| Season | First | Second | Third |
| 2014–15 | Elizaveta Tuktamysheva | Alena Leonova | Hannah Miller |
| 2015–16 | Elizaveta Tuktamysheva | Anna Pogorilaya | Adelina Sotnikova |
| 2016–17 | Elizaveta Tuktamysheva | Mirai Nagasu | Mariah Bell |
| 2017–18 | Carolina Kostner | Stanislava Konstantinova | Elizaveta Tuktamysheva |
| 2018–19 | Elizaveta Tuktamysheva | Bradie Tennell | Elizabet Tursynbayeva |
| 2019–20 | Elizaveta Tuktamysheva | You Young | Lim Eun-soo |
| 2021–22 | Alysa Liu | Anastasiia Gubanova | Ekaterina Kurakova |
| 2022–23 | Kim Ye-lim | Ekaterina Kurakova | Lindsay Thorngren |
| 2023–24 | Kim Chae-yeon | Anastasiia Gubanova | Ekaterina Kurakova |
| 2024–25 | Elyce Lin-Gracey | Sarah Everhardt | Isabeau Levito |

### Pairs

| Season | First | Second | Third |
| 2014–15 | Alexa Scimeca Chris Knierim | Haven Denney Brandon Frazier | Jessica Calalang Zack Sidhu |
| 2015–16 | Aliona Savchenko Bruno Massot | Evgenia Tarasova Vladimir Morozov | Natalja Zabijako Alexander Enbert |
| 2016–17 | Valentina Marchei Ondřej Hotárek | Nicole Della Monica Matteo Guarise | Kristina Astakhova Alexei Rogonov |
| 2017–18 | Natalia Zabiiako Alexander Enbert | Nicole Della Monica Matteo Guarise | Kristina Astakhova Alexei Rogonov |
| 2018–19 | Aleksandra Boikova Dmitrii Kozlovskii | Kirsten Moore-Towers Michael Marinaro | Alisa Efimova Alexander Korovin |
| 2019–20 | Ashley Cain-Gribble Timothy LeDuc | Tarah Kayne Danny O'Shea | Minerva Fabienne Hase Nolan Seegert |
| 2021–22 | Evgenia Tarasova Vladimir Morozov | Jessica Calalang Brian Johnson | Vanessa James Eric Radford |
| 2022–23 | Rebecca Ghilardi Filippo Ambrosini | Annika Hocke Robert Kunkel | Alisa Efimova Ruben Blommaert |
| 2023–24 | Minerva Fabienne Hase Nikita Volodin | Annika Hocke Robert Kunkel | Lucrezia Beccari Matteo Guarise |
| 2024–25 | Ellie Kam Danny O'Shea | Alisa Efimova Misha Mitrofanov | Rebecca Ghilardi Filippo Ambrosini |

### Ice dance

| Season | First | Second | Third |
| 2014–15 | Maia Shibutani Alex Shibutani | Charlène Guignard Marco Fabbri | Nelli Zhiganshina Alexander Gazsi |
| 2015–16 | Charlène Guignard Marco Fabbri | Isabella Tobias Ilia Tkachenko | Natalia Kaliszek Maksym Spodyriev |
| 2016–17 | Ekaterina Bobrova Dmitri Soloviev | Madison Chock Evan Bates | Charlène Guignard Marco Fabbri |
| 2017–18 | Ekaterina Bobrova Dmitri Soloviev | Charlène Guignard Marco Fabbri | Tiffany Zahorski Jonathan Guerreiro |
| 2018–19 | Piper Gilles Paul Poirier | Charlène Guignard Marco Fabbri | Christina Carreira Anthony Ponomarenko |
| 2019–20 | Charlène Guignard Marco Fabbri | Madison Chock Evan Bates | Laurence Fournier Beaudry Nikolaj Sørensen |
| 2021–22 | Charlène Guignard Marco Fabbri | Diana Davis Gleb Smolkin | Olivia Smart Adrián Díaz |
| 2022–23 | Lilah Fear Lewis Gibson | Marjorie Lajoie Zachary Lagha | Allison Reed Saulius Ambrulevičius |
| 2023–24 | Lilah Fear Lewis Gibson | Allison Reed Saulius Ambrulevičius | Diana Davis Gleb Smolkin |
| 2024–25 | Lilah Fear Lewis Gibson | Evgeniia Lopareva Geoffrey Brissaud | Christina Carreira Anthony Ponomarenko |

## Top scoring skaters per season
### Men's singles

| Season | Skater | Nation | First event | Score | Second event | Score | Total score |
| 2014–15 | Michal Březina | Czech Republic | 2014 Nebelhorn Trophy | 228.48 | 2014 Golden Spin of Zagreb | 239.62 | 468.10 |
| 2015–16 | Jason Brown | United States | 2015 Ondrej Nepela Trophy | 239.37 | 2015 Ice Challenge | 240.65 | 480.02 |
| 2016–17 | Jason Brown | United States | 2016 Lombardia Trophy | 256.49 | 2016 U.S. International Classic | 254.04 | 510.53 |
| 2017–18 | Mikhail Kolyada | Russia | 2017 Ondrej Nepela Trophy | 247.81 | 2017 Finlandia Trophy | 248.50 | 496.31 |
| 2018–19 | Mikhail Kolyada | Russia | 2018 Ondrej Nepela Trophy | 274.37 | 2018 Golden Spin of Zagreb | 253.14 | 527.51 |
| 2019–20 | Dmitri Aliev | Russia | 2019 Lombardia Trophy | 249.62 | 2019 Nepela Memorial | 255.32 | 504.94 |
| 2021–22 | Petr Gumennik | Russia | 2021 Denis Ten Memorial Challenge | 263.14 | 2021 Warsaw Cup | 242.91 | 506.05 |
| 2022–23 | Kévin Aymoz | France | 2022 U.S. International Classic | 236.17 | 2022 Warsaw Cup | 258.02 | 494.19 |
| 2023–24 | Lukas Britschgi | Switzerland | 2023 Budapest Trophy | 246.12 | 2023 Warsaw Cup | 246.22 | 492.34 |
| 2024–25 | Daniel Grassl | Italy | 2024 Denis Ten Memorial Challenge | 237.70 | 2024 Nepela Memorial | 267.08 | 504.78 |

### Women's singles

| Season | Skater | Nation | First event | Score | Second event | Score | Total score |
| 2014–15 | Elizaveta Tuktamysheva | Russia | 2014 Finlandia Trophy | 193.31 | 2014 Warsaw Cup | 196.66 | 389.97 |
| 2015–16 | Elizaveta Tuktamysheva | Russia | 2015 Warsaw Cup | 192.93 | 2015 Golden Spin of Zagreb | 201.33 | 394.26 |
| 2016–17 | Elizaveta Tuktamysheva | Russia | 2016 Nebelhorn Trophy | 185.93 | 2016 Golden Spin of Zagreb | 192.03 | 377.96 |
| 2017–18 | Carolina Kostner | Italy | 2017 Lombardia Trophy | 198.36 | 2017 Finlandia Trophy | 193.76 | 392.12 |
| 2018–19 | Elizaveta Tuktamysheva | Russia | 2018 Lombardia Trophy | 206.07 | 2018 Finlandia Trophy | 202.85 | 408.92 |
| 2019–20 | Elizaveta Tuktamysheva | Russia | 2019 Lombardia Trophy | 214.38 | 2019 Golden Spin of Zagreb | 221.15 | 435.53 |
| 2021–22 | Alysa Liu | United States | 2021 Lombardia Trophy | 219.24 | 2021 Nebelhorn Trophy | 207.40 | 426.64 |
| 2022–23 | Kim Ye-lim | South Korea | 2022 U.S. International Classic | 190.64 | 2022 Finlandia Trophy | 213.97 | 404.61 |
| 2023–24 | Kim Chae-yeon | South Korea | 2023 Lombardia Trophy | 180.78 | 2023 Nepela Memorial | 202.26 | 383.04 |
| 2024–25 | Elyce Lin-Gracey | United States | 2024 Cranberry Cup International | 193.99 | 2024 Nebelhorn Trophy | 213.33 | 407.32 |

### Pairs

| Season | Team | Nation | First event | Score | Second event | Score | Total score |
| 2014–15 | Alexa Scimeca Chris Knierim | United States | 2014 U.S. International Classic | 163.24 | 2014 Nebelhorn Trophy | 166.10 | 329.34 |
| 2015–16 | Aliona Savchenko Bruno Massot | Germany | 2015 Tallinn Trophy | 214.42 | 2015 Warsaw Cup | 209.60 | 424.02 |
| 2016–17 | Valentina Marchei Ondřej Hotárek | Italy | 2016 Lombardia Trophy | 179.56 | 2016 Warsaw Cup | 189.26 | 368.82 |
| 2017–18 | Natalia Zabiiako Alexander Enbert | Russia | 2017 Lombardia Trophy | 196.06 | 2017 Golden Spin of Zagreb | 202.96 | 399.02 |
| 2018–19 | Aleksandra Boikova Dmitrii Kozlovskii | Russia | 2018 Lombardia Trophy | 191.99 | 2018 Finlandia Trophy | 188.54 | 380.53 |
| 2019–20 | Ashley Cain-Gribble Timothy LeDuc | United States | 2019 U.S. International Classic | 205.58 | 2019 Golden Spin of Zagreb | 199.43 | 405.01 |
| 2021–22 | Evgenia Tarasova Vladimir Morozov | Russia | 2021 Finlandia Trophy | 213.72 | 2021 Golden Spin of Zagreb | 228.49 | 442.21 |
| 2022–23 | Rebecca Ghilardi Filippo Ambrosini | Italy | 2022 U.S. International Classic | 189.22 | 2022 Warsaw Cup | 184.21 | 373.43 |
| 2023–24 | Minerva Fabienne Hase Nikita Volodin | Germany | 2023 Lombardia Trophy | 194.52 | 2023 Nebelhorn Trophy | 194.96 | 389.48 |
| 2024–25 | Ellie Kam Danny O'Shea | United States | 2024 John Nicks International | 191.62 | 2024 Nebelhorn Trophy | 184.38 | 376.00 |

### Ice dance

| Season | Team | Nation | First event | Score | Second event | Score | Total score |
| 2014–15 | Maia Shibutani Alex Shibutani | United States | 2014 Ondrej Nepela Trophy | 162.98 | 2014 Ice Challenge | 166.34 | 329.32 |
| 2015–16 | Charlène Guignard Marco Fabbri | Italy | 2015 Warsaw Cup | 169.72 | 2015 Golden Spin of Zagreb | 172.28 | 342.00 |
| 2016–17 | Ekaterina Bobrova Dmitri Soloviev | Russia | 2016 Ondrej Nepela Memorial | 178.84 | 2016 Warsaw Cup | 183.60 | 362.44 |
| 2017–18 | Ekaterina Bobrova Dmitri Soloviev | Russia | 2017 Ondrej Nepela Trophy | 181.92 | 2017 Golden Spin of Zagreb | 186.66 | 368.58 |
| 2018–19 | Piper Gilles Paul Poirier | Canada | 2018 Golden Spin of Zagreb | 201.27 | 2018 Nebelhorn Trophy | 194.12 | 395.39 |
| 2019–20 | Charlène Guignard Marco Fabbri | Italy | 2019 Lombardia Trophy | 202.10 | 2019 Golden Spin of Zagreb | 202.18 | 404.28 |
| 2021–22 | Charlène Guignard Marco Fabbri | Italy | 2021 Lombardia Trophy | 205.36 | 2021 Cup of Austria | 208.88 | 414.24 |
| 2022–23 | Lilah Fear Lewis Gibson | Great Britain | 2022 U.S. International Classic | 190.80 | 2022 Nebelhorn Trophy | 206.60 | 397.40 |
| 2023–24 | Lilah Fear Lewis Gibson | Great Britain | 2023 Nebelhorn Trophy | 207.84 | 2023 Nepela Memorial | 200.46 | 408.30 |
| 2024–25 | Lilah Fear Lewis Gibson | Great Britain | 2024 Nebelhorn Trophy | 207.01 | 2024 Nepela Memorial | 210.65 | 417.66 |