The Denis Ten Memorial Challenge is an annual figure skating competition sanctioned by the International Skating Union (ISU), organized and hosted by the Denis Ten Foundation and the Kazakhstan Skating Union. The competition debuted in 2019 and is named in honor of Denis Ten, a former Kazakh figure skater who won the bronze medal at the 2014 Winter Olympics. The Denis Ten Memorial Challenge has been an Challenger Series event every year since 2021. Medals may be awarded in men's singles, women's singles, pair skating, and ice dance; and as part of the Challenger Series, skaters earn ISU World Standing points based on their results.

History

The Denis Ten Memorial Challenge is named in honor of Denis Ten, a former figure skater who competed internationally for Kazakhstan. He was the 2014 Winter Olympic bronze medalist, two-time World Championship medalist (silver in 2013; bronze in 2015), and the 2015 Four Continents champion. He was a member of the Astana Presidential Club, an organization that supported and developed high-achievement sports in Kazakhstan. Prior to Ten's success, Kazakhstan had almost no presence in international figure skating. After his bronze medal finish at the 2014 Winter Olympics, he became a national icon, responsible for a surge in popularity of figure skating in Kazakhstan. He was also part of Kazakhstan's bid to host the 2022 Winter Olympics. Ten was murdered on 19 July 2018 in Almaty by two carjackers who were attempting to steal his mirrors. His death prompted widespread condolences from the international sports community. Thomas Bach, president of the International Olympic Committee, described Ten as "a great athlete and a great ambassador for his sport... Such a tragedy to lose him at such a young age." Arystanbek Muhamediuly, Kazakh Minister of Culture and Sport, said: "Denis Ten was an incredible figure skater, the legend of our sport, our pride."

Organized by the Denis Ten Foundation, the inaugural edition of the Denis Ten Memorial Challenge was held in 2019 at the Halyk Arena in Almaty. Ten's mother Oksana explained that one of Ten's goals was to develop figure skating in Kazakhstan. Morisi Kvitelashvili of Georgia won the inaugural men's event, Serafima Sakhanovich of Russia won the women's event, Lina Kudriavtseva and Ilia Spiridonov of Russia won the pairs event, and Katharina Müller and Tim Dieck of Germany won the ice dance event. The competition was cancelled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In 2021, the Denis Ten Memorial Challenge was the seventh event of the ISU Challenger Series, a series of international figure skating competitions sanctioned by the International Skating Union (ISU) and organized by ISU member nations. The objective is to ensure consistent organization and structure within a series of international competitions linked together, providing opportunities for senior-level skaters to compete at the international level and also earn ISU World Standing points. When an event is held as part of the Challenger Series, it must host at least three of the four disciplines (men's singles, women's singles, pair skating, and ice dance) and representatives from at least ten different ISU member nations. The minimum number of entrants required for each discipline is eight skaters each in men's singles and women's singles, five teams in pair skating, and six teams in ice dance. Each ISU member nation is eligible to enter up to three skaters or teams per discipline in each competition, although the Kazakhstan Skating Union may enter an unlimited number of entrants in their own event. The Denis Ten Memorial Challenge has been a Challenger Series event every year since 2021. The 2026 Denis Ten Memorial Challenge is scheduled to be held from 8 to 11 October in Astana.

Senior medalists

CS: Challenger Series event

Men's singles +Senior men's event medalists Year Location Gold Silver Bronze 2019 Almaty Morisi Kvitelashvili Makar Ignatov Daniel Albert Naurits 2020 Competition cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic Petr Gumennik Mark Kondratiuk Andrei Mozalev 2022 CS Almaty Nika Egadze Dias Jirenbayev Vladimir Litvintsev 2023 CS Astana Lim Ju-heon Nika Egadze Kim Han-gil 2024 CS Mikhail Shaidorov Vladimir Litvintsev Nika Egadze 2025 CS Almaty Nika Egadze Jason Brown 2026 CS

Women's singles +Senior women's event medalists Year Location Gold Silver Bronze 2019 Almaty Serafima Sakhanovich Anastasiia Guliakova Alexandra Feigin 2020 Competition cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic Viktoriia Safonova Ekaterina Ryabova Anastasiia Shabotova 2022 CS Almaty Kim Min-chae Anna Levkovets Choi Da-bin 2023 CS Astana Mariia Seniuk Choi Da-bin Alina Urushadze 2024 CS Anastasiia Gubanova Sofia Samodelkina Lara Naki Gutmann 2025 CS Almaty Lee Hae-in Yun Ah-sun Madeline Schizas 2026 CS

Pairs +Senior pairs' event medalists Year Location Gold Silver Bronze 2019 Almaty 2020 Competition cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic 2021 No pairs competitions since 2021

Ice dance +Senior ice dance event medalists Year Location Gold Silver Bronze 2019 Almaty 2020 Competition cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic 2022 CS Almaty 2023 CS Astana 2024 CS 2025 CS Almaty 2026 CS

Junior medalists Men's singles +Junior men's event medalists Year Location Gold Silver Bronze 2019 Almaty Daniil Samsonov Artur Danielian Mark Kondratyuk 2020 Competition cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic 2021 Vladislav Dikidzhi Fedor Zonov Semyon Soloviev 2022 Almaty Artur Smagulov Leonid Gitelman Nikita Krivosheyev 2023 Astana Choi Ha-bin Konstantin Supatashvili Ali Efe Günes 2024 Nikita Krivosheyev Artur Smagulov Temirlan Yakiyaev 2025 Almaty Artur Smagulov Nikita Kozlov Kenan Berdibayev 2026

Women's singles +Junior women's event medalists Year Location Gold Silver Bronze 2019 Almaty Daria Usacheva Maiia Khromykh Maria Levushkina 2020 Competition cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic 2021 Sofia Samodelkina Elizaveta Kulikova Varvara Kisel 2022 Almaty Inga Gurgenidze Kim Yu-seong Karina Issakova 2023 Astana Anna Iushchenkova Park Eun-bi 2024 Vasilisa Bogomolova Veronika Kim Anna Sannikova 2025 Almaty Kim Gun-hee Kim Min-song Arina Kalugina 2026

Ice dance +Junior ice dance event medalists Year Location Gold Silver Bronze 2019 Almaty No junior ice dance competitors 2020 Competition cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic 2021 2022 Almaty No junior ice dance competitors 2023 Astana No junior ice dance competitors 2026 Almaty

Cumulative medal count (senior medalists) Men's singles

Women's singles

Pairs

Ice dance

Total medals

References

External links Denis Ten Memorial Challenge at Skating Scores Denis Ten Foundation