Italian Tennis Icon Nicola Pietrangeli Has Died at 92
The tennis champion is one of only three Italian men to win a Grand Slam singles title.
The world of tennis says goodbye to a true icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, passed away at 92.
The player made history by becoming the initial Italian to capture a Grand Slam singles title, earning his maiden triumph at the French Open in 1959 and successfully defending the prestigious trophy a year later.
With a remarkable 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was universally regarded as the country's finest player until the rise of current star and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is in mourning for an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian inducted in the International Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," confirmed the Italian Tennis Federation.
Beyond his two French Open victories, Pietrangeli also finished as runner-up 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 first title in 1976.
Organisers 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..."
