Italy's Court Great Nicola Pietrangeli Passes Away at the Age of 92
The tennis champion is one of only three Italian men to claim a Grand Slam singles title.
Italian sport says goodbye to a true icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, left us at ninety-two.
The player made history by emerging as the first Italian to win 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 country's finest player prior to the advent of current star and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner.
"The sport in Italy is grieving an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian honored in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," announced the Italian Tennis Federation.
In addition to his pair of French Open triumphs, 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 first title in 1976.
Officials of the Italian Open, where he was a two-time winner, said: "We are profoundly saddened that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
