🔗 Share this article Italy's Tennis Legend Nicola Pietrangeli Dies at the Age of 92 The tennis champion remains among a select trio of Italian men to secure a Grand Slam singles title. Italian sport is mourning a authentic icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, has died at the age of 92. Pietrangeli etched his name by emerging as the first Italian to win a Grand Slam singles title, earning his initial triumph at the French Open in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy in 1960. With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the nation's finest player prior to the emergence of current world number two and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner. "The sport in Italy is mourning an legend. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian enrolled in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," confirmed the Italian Tennis Federation. Beyond his pair of French Open successes, Pietrangeli also was the finalist in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964. He boasts a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, securing victories in 120 of them, and guided his country to its inaugural title in 1976. Organisers of the Italian Open, an event where he was a two-time winner, stated: "We are profoundly saddened that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."
The tennis champion remains among a select trio of Italian men to secure a Grand Slam singles title. Italian sport is mourning a authentic icon: Nicola Pietrangeli, a two-time French Open champion, has died at the age of 92. Pietrangeli etched his name by emerging as the first Italian to win a Grand Slam singles title, earning his initial triumph at the French Open in 1959 and retaining the coveted trophy in 1960. With a staggering 48 career titles, Pietrangeli was long held to be the nation's finest player prior to the emergence of current world number two and four-time major winner Jannik Sinner. "The sport in Italy is mourning an legend. Nicola Pietrangeli, the only Italian enrolled in the World Tennis Hall of Fame, has passed away," confirmed the Italian Tennis Federation. Beyond his pair of French Open successes, Pietrangeli also was the finalist in Paris in the years 1961 and 1964. He boasts a remarkable 164 matches played for Italy in the prestigious team competition, securing victories in 120 of them, and guided his country to its inaugural title in 1976. Organisers of the Italian Open, an event where he was a two-time winner, stated: "We are profoundly saddened that we bid farewell to Nicola Pietrangeli, a veritable legend of Italian tennis..."