Italian Court Legend Nicola Pietrangeli Dies at Ninety-Two
The tennis champion is one of only three Italian men to win a Grand Slam singles title.
Italian sport mourns a true icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, left us at ninety-two.
Pietrangeli etched his name by becoming the first Italian to win a Grand Slam singles title, earning his initial triumph at the French Open in 1959 and successfully defending the coveted trophy a year later.
With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was universally regarded as the nation's most accomplished player until the advent of current star and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner.
"Italian tennis is mourning an icon. Nicola Pietrangeli, the sole Italian inducted in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," announced the Italian Tennis Federation.
In addition to his pair of French Open victories, Pietrangeli also reached the final in Paris in both 1961 and 1964.
He boasts a record 164 matches played for Italy in the Davis Cup, winning 120 of them, and led 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 say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a true legend of Italian tennis..."
