Italian Tennis Icon Nicola Pietrangeli Passes Away at 92
The tennis champion is among a select trio of Italian men to win a Grand Slam singles title.
Italian sport says goodbye to a true legend: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, passed away at 92.
Pietrangeli etched his name by becoming the first Italian to secure a Grand Slam singles title, achieving his maiden triumph at the French Open in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy a year later.
With an impressive 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the country's finest player until the advent of current star and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is in mourning for an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian enrolled in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," confirmed the national federation.
Beyond his two French Open victories, Pietrangeli also was the finalist in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964.
He set a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the Davis Cup, securing victories in 120 of them, and led his country to its inaugural title in 1976.
Organisers of the Italian Open, an event where he was a double winner, commented: "It is with deep sadness that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
