The Icechallenge (formerly known as the Leo-Scheu-Gedächtnislaufen or Leo Scheu Memorial) is an annual international

figure skating competition A figure skating competition is a judged sports competition in figure skating. Types of figure skating competitions International International competitions sanctioned by the International Skating Union (ISU) are governed by the union's rules. ...

organized by the Grazer Eislaufverein and sanctioned by the Austrian Figure Skating association and the

International Skating Union The International Skating Union (ISU) is the international governing body for competitive ice skating disciplines, including figure skating, synchronized skating, speed skating, and short track speed skating. It was founded in Scheveningen, Net ...

. The event is usually held every autumn in

Graz Graz (; sl, Gradec) is the capital city of the Austrian state of Styria and second-largest city in Austria after Vienna. As of 1 January 2021, it had a population of 331,562 (294,236 of whom had principal-residence status). In 2018, the popul ...

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

. Medals may be awarded in the disciplines of men's singles, ladies' singles,

pair skating Pair skating is a figure skating discipline defined by the International Skating Union (ISU) as "the skating of two persons in unison who perform their movements in such harmony with each other as to give the impression of genuine Pair Skating a ...

, and

ice dancing Ice dance (sometimes referred to as ice dancing) is a discipline of figure skating that historically draws from ballroom dancing. It joined the World Figure Skating Championships in 1952, and became a Winter Olympic Games medal sport in 1976. Ac ...

. In 2014 and 2015, the Ice Challenge's senior events were part of the

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. E ...

. In 2021, the Icechallenge returned to the ISU Challenger Series under the name Cup of Austria.

History

The event began in 1971 as the Leo-Scheu-Gedächtnislaufen (Leo Scheu Memorial). It was re-titled the Icechallenge in 2008. The name Leo Scheu Memorial was retained for a junior, novice, and lower-level competition that is held in conjunction with the senior event. Leo Scheu was the founder of the ice skating club

and a member of the

Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party (german: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP), was a far-right politics, far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that crea ...

.Endbericht der ExpertInnenkommission für Straßennamen Graz (Final Report of Experts of The City of Graz Street Names)
Graz 2017, pp. 126-128. In 2011, the ISU designated the Icechallenge as one of the events at which skaters could achieve a minimum score. In 2014 and 2015, the Ice Challenge's senior events were part of the

. The 2016 edition was cancelled. 2017 the Icechallenge was held as international cmpetition only in single skating. 2021 the Icechallenge was back in ISU Challenger Series.

Senior medalists

''CS:

Men

Women

Pairs

Ice dancing

Junior medalists

Men

Ladies

Pairs

Ice dancing

Advanced novice medalists

Boys

Girls

Pairs

Ice dancing

References

External links

Ice Challenge official website
{{ISU Challenger Series ISU Challenger Series International figure skating competitions hosted by Austria Sport in Graz