Italy's Court Legend Nicola Pietrangeli Passes Away at Ninety-Two
The tennis champion is one of only three Italian men to claim a major singles title.
Italian sport says goodbye to a true icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, left us at the age of 92.
He carved his legacy by emerging as the pioneering Italian to win a Grand Slam singles title, securing his first triumph at Roland Garros in 1959 and successfully defending the coveted trophy in 1960.
With a remarkable 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was widely considered the country's most accomplished player until the emergence of current world number two and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner.
"The sport in Italy is grieving an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian inducted in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," confirmed the national federation.
Alongside his pair of French Open victories, Pietrangeli also was the finalist in Paris in both 1961 and 1964.
He holds a record 164 matches played for Italy in the Davis Cup, winning 120 of them, and guided his country to its first title in 1976.
Organisers of the Italian Open, where he was a double winner, stated: "It is with deep sadness that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."
