Alina Gorbacheva won the Budapest Trophy for the first international gold of her career on Sunday, Oct. 18 by 23.43 points after a clean skate in both programs. The Budapest Trophy was also the first international competition of her career following select Russian skaters being allowed to compete under a neutral status.
Romania’s Julia Sauter completed a season best score of 179.92 which earned her second place. Sauter previously competed at the Nepela Memorial earlier this season, but her 65.53- and 114.39-point short program and free skate at the Budapest Trophy were both season bests.
2025 Swiss National Champion, Kimmy Repond, came home with third place after rebounding from sixth in the short program. Her 116.13 free skate score was a season’s best for her and was good enough placed her second among the women.
Following Repond, Estonia’s Maria Eliise Kaljuvere recorded season-bests in the short program, free skate and overall score although she fell to fourth place from second due to a seventh-place free skate.
2026 Olympian, Olga Mikutina finished in fifth after a 62.75 points short program and a 111.04 free skate. She previously skated at the Tayside Trophy earlier this season, where she finished first overall, but it was the Budapest Trophy that once again saw season bests for the skater in the short program, free skate and overall score.
Italy’s Marina Piredda skated in her second event of the 2026-27 season and catapulted up the standings from 12th in the short program to sixth overall after the free skate. Despite finishing lower overall at Budapest, her score of 170.81 was better than her overall score at the Nebelhorn Trophy in late-September, improving by 12.77 points from her 158.04 Nebelhorn Trophy score.
Sweden’s Anita Östlund improved from her eighth-place finish at the Lombardia Trophy in mid-September to finish seventh at the Budapest Trophy. Over the course of the competition, she placed eighth in the short and ninth in the free for a total score of 170.19.
Following Östlund was Canadian Sara-Maude Dupuis and Swiss skater Livia Kaiser, who finished with 169.78 and 168.07 points respectively. While Kaiser had the better short program, placing seventh to Dupuis’ 13th, Dupuis had the better free skate, finishing sixth to Kaisers 11th place free finish.
Rounding out the top 10 was Norway’s Mia Risa Gomez, who moved up eight spots in the free skate after an 18th place short program. In the free, Gomez skated to the third best score of 114.41 which catapulted her to 10th.
Two-time reigning Canadian National Champion, Madeline Schizas, did not have the best weekend. She fell once in the short program after attempting a triple lutz causing her to finish ninth. In the free skate, she couldn’t hold onto her triple flip and fell again on her triple lutz to finish 10th for the free skate and 11th overall.
Alina Bonillo, Anna Pezzetta, Polina Dzsumanyijazova and Hannah Frank rounded out the top 15 with scores between 159.79 and 157.67.
Pernille With, Nataly Langerbaur, Inga Gurgenidze, Haruna Murakami, Elizabet Gervits, Nikola Fomchenkova, Julia Van Dijk, Michaela Vrastakova, Julia Kasprzyk and Sophia Joline Von Felton finished 16th through 25th.
Alexandra Feigin, Maxine Bautista, Meda Variakojyte, Lotta Artimo, Sofja Stepcenko, Saskia Oudejans, Weronika Ferlin, Mariia Dmitrieva, Lovisa Aav and Ana Stratulat made up 26th through 35th place.
Zere Sarbalina and Annika Lytchoff Skibby took 36th and 37th to finish out the standings.
The next International Skating Union, Figure Skating event is the first Grand Prix of the season, the Grand Prix de France between Friday, Oct. 23 and Sunday Oct. 25, 2026.
During the GP France, all four categories — men’s singles, women’s singles, pairs and ice dance — will compete.
In the United States, you can watch the Grand Prix de France on Peacock.