Peter Frenkel (born 13 May 1939 in Eckartsberga) is an East German athlete who was one of the best 20 km race walkers in the world in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

He won the gold medal for East Germany in the Munich Olympics of 1972 in the 20 kilometre walk, in a time of 1:26:43.

He defended his title at the 1976 Olympics held in Montreal, Canada, finishing in third place.

He served in the East German Army while training, rising to the rank of Major.

He was vice-president of the Union of German Olympians (Gemeinschaft Deutscher Olympiateilnehmer, or GDO) from 1991 to 1998.