Azzurri Tennis Great Nicola Pietrangeli Dies at Ninety-Two
The tennis champion remains one of only three Italian men to win a major singles title.
The world of tennis mourns a genuine legend: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, left us at the age of 92.
He carved his legacy by emerging as the initial Italian to secure a Grand Slam singles title, achieving his first triumph at the French Open in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy a year later.
With an impressive 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the nation's most accomplished player prior to the rise of current star 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," confirmed the national federation.
Beyond his pair of French Open triumphs, Pietrangeli also was the finalist in Paris in both 1961 and 1964.
He holds a record 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, winning 120 of them, and guided his country to its inaugural title in 1976.
Officials of the Italian Open, an event where he was a double winner, said: "We are profoundly saddened that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
