Italy's Court Icon Nicola Pietrangeli Has Died at 92
The tennis champion is among a select trio of Italian men to secure a major singles title.
Italian sport mourns a authentic icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, passed away at ninety-two.
He carved his legacy by becoming the first Italian to capture a Grand Slam singles title, achieving his initial triumph at the French Open in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy in 1960.
With an impressive 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was widely considered the country's most accomplished player until the emergence of current world number two and four-times major winner Jannik Sinner.
"The sport in Italy is mourning an titan. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian honored in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," stated the Italian Tennis Federation.
Beyond his two French Open victories, Pietrangeli also was the finalist in Paris in both 1961 and 1964.
He set a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the Davis Cup, securing victories in 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, stated: "We are profoundly saddened that we say goodbye to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."