The inaugural competition – the
1979 NHK Trophy – was held in
Tokyo to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the National Skating Union of Japan. The competition is named after the
Japan Broadcasting Corporation (NHK), the event's sponsor.
Robin Cousins of Great Britain won the men's event,
Emi Watanabe of Japan won the women's event,
Irina Vorobieva and
Igor Lisovsky of the Soviet Union won the pairs event, and
Irina Moiseeva and Andrei Minenkov, also of the Soviet Union, won the ice dance event. The five qualifying competitions during this inaugural season were the
1995 Nations Cup, the
1995 NHK Trophy, the
1995 Skate America, the
1995 Skate Canada, and the
1995 Trophée de France. Skaters earned points based on their results in their respective competitions and the top skaters or teams in each discipline were then invited to compete at the
Champions Series Final. although
You Young of South Korea was added to the roster once her travel to Japan was approved. The pairs event was also cancelled. ==Medalists==