Joan Haanappel

Joan Haanappel (13 November 1940 – 23 February 2024) was a Dutch figure skater and sports presenter for NOS, AVRO, ZDF and Eurosport.

Aged 12 years, she competed at her first major international competition, the European Championships in Dortmund, where she finished 14th.

In 1958, Haanappel became the first Dutch figure skater to win a continental medal, finishing third behind Austrian duo Ingrid Wendl and Hanna Walter at the 1958 European Championships in Bratislava, Czechoslovakia.

She took bronze at the 1959 European Championships in Davos, Switzerland, joining Walter and Dijkstra on the podium.

She won her third consecutive bronze medal at the 1960 European Championships in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, West Germany, and then placed 5th at the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley, Placer County, California.

Haanappel in 2018