Originally known as the Ennia Challenge Cup, the first installment was held in November 1976 at the
Thialf ice arena in
Heerenveen. It was sponsored by the Heerenveen Figure Skating Club and the insurance company Ennia, and featured only a competition for women. Eleven women competed, representing Australia, Italy, Sweden, Switzerland,
West Germany, as well as the Netherlands. Jel Geldof, secretary of the Heerenveen Figure Skating Club, explained that Ennia wanted to sponsor the competition in order to give figure skating more prominence in the Netherlands. However, as planning began late, it was not included on the calendar of the
International Skating Union, and it was too late for many nations, especially those in the
Eastern Bloc, to schedule their skaters. Though the competition was considered a success, Ennia made certain demands in exchange for their continued sponsorship: the competition in 1997 would have to be expanded to include the men's and pairs events, be placed on the official ISU calendar and scheduled such that it didn't conflict with the
Richmond Trophy in Great Britain, and attract top-tier skaters, including those from Eastern Europe. Upon a request from the ISU, the Ennia Challenge Cup omitted
compulsory figures and
compulsory dance from the competition in 1978. The ISU explained that the omission was a trial experiment to help guide future decision-making. At the 1978 Ennia Challenge Cup,
Denise Biellmann of Switzerland, winner of the women's event, had her name given to a new strain of
tulip, and a bouquet of her namesake tulips was presented to her by
Queen Juliana of the Netherlands. In 1983, Ennia announced a merger with AGO to form
Aegon; the competition was renamed the
Aegon Challenge Cup.''' ==Senior medalists==