Azzurri Tennis Icon Nicola Pietrangeli Passes Away at Ninety-Two
The tennis champion stands as one of only three Italian men to secure a Grand Slam singles title.
Italian sport mourns a true icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, left us at the age of 92.
The player made history by becoming the pioneering Italian to secure a Grand Slam singles title, securing his first triumph at the French Open in 1959 and retaining the prestigious trophy in 1960.
With an impressive 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was universally regarded as the country's finest player prior to the rise of current world number two and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is mourning an icon. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian inducted in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," stated the Italian Tennis Federation.
Alongside his pair of French Open successes, Pietrangeli also was the finalist in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964.
He set a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, securing victories in 120 of them, and guided his country to its maiden title in 1976.
Officials of the Italian Open, an event where he was a two-time winner, stated: "We are profoundly saddened that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
