Italian Tennis Icon Nicola Pietrangeli Passes Away at the Age of 92
The tennis champion remains one of only three Italian men to win a major singles title.
Italian sport is mourning a genuine legend: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, passed away at 92.
The player made history by emerging as the first Italian to secure a Grand Slam singles title, earning his first triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and retaining the prestigious trophy a year later.
With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was universally regarded as the nation's finest player prior to the advent of current star and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is mourning an legend. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian honored in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," confirmed the Italian Tennis Federation.
Beyond his two French Open successes, Pietrangeli also finished as runner-up in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964.
He set a record 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, winning 120 of them, and led his country to its maiden title in 1976.
Officials of the Italian Open, an event where he was a double winner, stated: "It is with deep sadness that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."
