Azzurri Tennis Great Nicola Pietrangeli Dies at 92
The tennis champion remains one of only three Italian men to claim a major singles title.
The world of tennis says goodbye to a true pioneer: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, passed away at ninety-two.
Pietrangeli etched his name by emerging as the pioneering Italian to secure a Grand Slam singles title, earning his maiden triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and successfully defending the coveted trophy a year later.
With a remarkable 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was universally regarded as the nation's finest player prior to the emergence of current world number two and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is grieving an icon. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian enrolled in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," stated the Italian Tennis Federation.
Alongside his pair of French Open successes, Pietrangeli also reached the final in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964.
He boasts a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, winning 120 of them, and guided 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 true legend of Italian tennis..."