Joyce Coates

Joyce Coates spent all of her competitive pairs skating career with fellow Liverpudlian Tony Holles. They started skating together in 1952, when he was 13-years-of-age and she was 12. The following year they finished second in the British Junior Pairs Championship and then won it in 1954. They were also runners-up in the Junior Ice Dance Championship in 1955 and 1956

Coates and Holles first took part in the senior British Championship in 1954/55 season and were second. They won the first of four consecutive titles the following season and immediately gained selection for the Cortina Winter Olympics, where they were placed 10th. Coates and Holles took part in three World Championships 1956-58 with a fourth place in the last of those years being their best result. The pair also went to four European Championships 1956-59, finishing third in the latter two years.

Coates and Holles turned professional just before the 1959 British Championships, and the following year finished third in the 1960 British and World Pairs Professional Championship, a title they won two years later at Nottingham. The duo turned to coaching in their home town, and one of their first major successes was in coaching the local pair of Linda Connolly and Colin Taylforth to their first British title in 1965.

Coates married Swindon Town footballer Stan Harland in 1970. He was playing in the Anglo-Italian Cup in Italy at the time, but returned to Liverpool for their wedding and then took Joyce on honeymoon – to Italy, where he continued playing in the tournament. He captained Swindon to a 3-0 victory over Napoli in a violent final that was abandoned after 79 minutes.