Italian Tennis Great Nicola Pietrangeli Dies at Ninety-Two
The tennis champion stands as one of only three Italian men to secure a major singles title.
The world of tennis says goodbye to a authentic pioneer: Nicola Pietrangeli, a double French Open champion, has died at the age of 92.
Pietrangeli etched his name by emerging as the pioneering Italian to win a Grand Slam singles title, earning his initial triumph at the French Open in 1959 and retaining the prestigious trophy the following year.
With an impressive 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was universally regarded as the country's greatest ever 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 World Tennis Hall of Fame, has died," announced the Italian Tennis Federation.
In addition to his two French Open victories, Pietrangeli also was the finalist 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 guided his country to its inaugural title in 1976.
Officials of the Italian Open, an event 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..."
