: the mountain near
Oberstdorf for which the Nebelhorn Trophy was named The Nebelhorn Trophy debuted in 1969 in
Oberstdorf, in what was then
West Germany, and is named after the nearby
Nebelhorn mountain. Early on, it was paired with a now-defunct French event – the
Grand Prix International St. Gervais – to form the
Coupe des Alpes, with many of the same skaters participating in both events. The 2002 Nebelhorn Trophy was used to test the new
ISU Judging System, designed in reaction to the
scandal at the 2002 Winter Olympics, while the event's actual results were still determined using the existing
6.0 system. The 2003 Nebelhorn Trophy was the first international skating competition to use the ISU Judging System to determine the official results. The
2009 Nebelhorn Trophy served as the final qualifying event for the
2010 Winter Olympics, as did the
2013 Nebelhorn Trophy for the
2014 Olympics, and the
2021 Nebelhorn Trophy for the
2022 Winter Olympics. The
ISU Challenger Series was introduced in 2014 as a series of international figure skating competitions, sanctioned by the International Skating Union 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. The Nebelhorn Trophy was one of the inaugural events. 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
German Ice Skating Union may enter an unlimited number of entrants in their own event. In February 2016, the ISU declared that the Nebelhorn Trophy, along with the
Ondrej Nepela Memorial, the
Finlandia Trophy, and the
Golden Spin of Zagreb, would constitute a "core group" of Challenger Series events in recognition of their long-standing traditions. The Nebelhorn Trophy has been a Challenger Series event every year since. Despite the
COVID-19 pandemic, the
2020 Nebelhorn Trophy was held, but with extensive
social distancing guidelines and procedures for the athletes and coaches in attendance, and without spectators. ==Medalists==