The ISU Junior Grand Prix in Latvia – officially known as the Riga Cup – is an international figure skating competition sanctioned by the International Skating Union (ISU), organized and hosted by the Latvian Skating Association (). It is held periodically as an event of the ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating (JGP), a series of international competitions exclusively for junior-level skaters. Medals may be awarded in men's singles, women's singles, pair skating, and ice dance. Skaters earn points based on their results at the qualifying competitions each season, and the top skaters or teams in each discipline are invited to then compete at the Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final.
History The ISU Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating (JGP) was established by the International Skating Union (ISU) in 1997 and consists of a series of seven international figure skating competitions exclusively for junior-level skaters. The locations of the Junior Grand Prix events change every year. While all seven competitions feature the men's, women's, and ice dance events, only four competitions each season feature the pairs event. Skaters earn points based on their results each season, and the top skaters or teams in each discipline are then invited to compete at the Junior Grand Prix of Figure Skating Final.
Skaters are eligible to compete on the junior-level circuit if they are at least 13 years old before 1 July of the respective season, but not yet 19 (for single skaters), 21 (for men and women in ice dance and women in pair skating), or 23 (for men in pair skating). Competitors are chosen by their respective skating federations. The number of entries allotted to each ISU member nation in each discipline is determined by their results at the prior World Junior Figure Skating Championships.
Latvia hosted its first Junior Grand Prix competition in 2011 in Riga. Ryuju Hino of Japan won the men's event, Polina Shelepen of Russia won the women's event, Sui Wenjing and Han Cong of China won the pairs event, and Maria Nosulia and Yevhen Kholoniuk of Ukraine won the ice dance event.
The ISU officially cancelled all scheduled Junior Grand Prix events for the 2020–21 season, which included the 2020 Riga Cup, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, citing increased travel and entry requirements between countries and potentially excessive sanitary and health care costs for those hosting competitions. On 30 June 2026, the ISU announced that figure skaters from Russia and Belarus would be allowed to compete at international competitions as Individual Neutral Athletes (AINs). Each skater was required to undergo an individual assessment conducted by the ISU Council to determine whether they met the criteria for neutral status, which included having not previously taken active part in the Russian war in Ukraine, as well as not having actively or publicly supported the war. As AINs, Russian and Belarusian skaters were not permitted to compete under their national flags or anthems. The most recent iteration of this competition was held in 2026.
Medalists
Men's singles +Men's event medalists Year Location Gold Silver Bronze 2011 Riga Ryuju Hino Zhang He Timothy Dolensky 2013 Jin Boyang Adian Pitkeev Shoma Uno 2015 Dmitri Aliev Deniss Vasiļjevs Alexei Krasnozhon 2017 Mitsuki Sumoto Makar Ignatov Tomoki Hiwatashi 2019 Andrei Mozalev Lee Si-hyeong Daniil Samsonov 2020 Competition cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic 2022 Nikolaj Memola Rio Nakata Rakhat Bralin 2024 Sena Takahashi Lee Jae-keun Shunsuke Nakamura 2025 Rio Nakata Grayson Long Genrikh Gartung 2026 Choi Ha-bin Lee Jae-keun Ean Weiler
Women's singles +Women's event medalists Year Location Gold Silver Bronze 2011 Riga Polina Shelepen Li Zijun Polina Agafonova 2013 Evgenia Medvedeva Maria Sotskova Karen Chen 2015 Maria Sotskova Kaori Sakamoto Choi Da-bin 2017 Daria Panenkova Rika Kihira Emmy Ma 2019 Lee Hae-in Daria Usacheva Rino Matsuike 2020 Competition cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic 2022 Shin Ji-a Soho Lee Ami Nakai 2024 Mao Shimada Elina Goidina Ko Na-yeon 2025 Mei Okada Huh Ji-yu Elisabeth Dibbern 2026 Hana Bath Mei Okada Wang Yihan
Pairs +Pairs event medalists Year Location Gold Silver Bronze 2011 Riga 2013 2015 2017 2019 No pairs competition 2020 Competition cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic 2022 2024 2025 2026
Ice dance +Ice dance event medalists Year Location Gold Silver Bronze 2011 Riga 2013 2015 2017 2019 2020 Competition cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic 2022 2024 2025 2026
References
External links ISU Junior Grand Prix at the International Skating Union Latvian Skating Association JGP Latvia at Skating Scores