Italy's Tennis Icon Nicola Pietrangeli Passes Away at 92
Nicola Pietrangeli stands as among a select trio of Italian men to secure a Grand Slam singles title.
Italian sport says goodbye to a true pioneer: 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 initial triumph at the French Open in 1959 and retaining the prestigious trophy in 1960.
With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the nation's most accomplished player until the rise of current world number two and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"The sport in Italy is mourning an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian honored in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," stated the Italian Tennis Federation.
Alongside his two French Open victories, Pietrangeli also was the finalist in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964.
He boasts 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.
Organisers of the Italian Open, an event where he was a two-time winner, commented: "We are profoundly saddened that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."
