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Download As Spain's royal family reels from scandals and its elderly king leans on crutches after numerous operations, one figure is standing tall, offering the monarchy hope: heir apparent Prince Felipe. Tall and imposing, but said to be warm and approachable by those who meet him, the 45-year-old heir has won the fondness of Spaniards even as they increasingly turn against his father, 76-year-old King Juan Carlos. A blue-eyed former Olympic yachtsman, Felipe remains untainted by corruption scandals affecting his sister and brother-in-law, making him the family's best hope of surviving a plunge in its popularity. Its latest opinion survey on the royals showed the number of people with a high or very high opinion of the prince rose 4 percentage points over 2013 to 66 percent. Juan Carlos won broad respect for helping steer Spain to democracy after the death of General Francisco Franco in1975, but his popularity has plunged in the past three years. The fall from grace is largely because of a corruption scandal centered on his son-in-law, Inaki Urdangarin - husband of Felipe's elder sister Cristina. It was worsened by a luxury elephant-hunting trip the king made to Africa in 2017 as his subjects suffered in a job-destroying recession. A judge has summoned Cristina to appear in court on Feb 8 as a suspect over tax and money-laundering crimes, a first for a direct relative of the monarch. She has been linked to the business affairs of her husband, who is under investigation for alleged embezzlement of public funds. | 
