Italy's Tennis Icon Nicola Pietrangeli Dies at 92
The tennis champion remains among a select trio of Italian men to claim a major singles title.
The world of tennis says goodbye to a authentic pioneer: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, passed away at 92.
The player made history by becoming the pioneering Italian to win a Grand Slam singles title, achieving his first triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy in 1960.
With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the country's greatest ever player until the advent of current star and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is in mourning for an legend. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian enrolled in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," confirmed the national federation.
Alongside his two French Open victories, Pietrangeli also reached the final in Paris in both 1961 and 1964.
He boasts a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, securing victories in 120 of them, and guided his country to its first title in 1976.
Organisers of the Italian Open, an event where he was a double winner, said: "It is with deep sadness that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
