Italian tennis legend Nicola Pietrangeli, 90 years old, was hospitalized on Thursday morning at the Agostino Gemelli university hospital in Rome due to an illness. The two-time Roland Garros winner felt dizzy and was hospitalized as a precaution.
Pietrangeli, who recently turned 90, has already undergone all the necessary tests, spent a whole day in hospital and he could be discharged as early as today.
Nicola Pietrangeli's career
Nicola Pietrangeli is a former Italian tennis player, born on 11 September 1933 in Tunis, Tunisia.
He is considered one of the greatest Italian tennis players of all time and helped bring Italian tennis to an international level.
Pietrangeli began playing tennis at a young age and showed great talent in the game. He achieved his first major success in 1954 by winning the Rome Tournament, becoming the first Italian to do so.
Since then, he has continued to achieve numerous tennis triumphs, both nationally and internationally.
The highest point of Pietrangeli's career is certainly represented by his successes at the Roland Garros, one of the four Grand Slam tournaments.
He won this tournament in 1959 and 1960, becoming the first Italian to achieve this result. He also reached the final in 1961 and 1964, further cementing his reputation as one of the best clay court players of all time.
In addition to his successes in Paris, Pietrangeli also won numerous other titles throughout his career.
He also represented Italy in the Davis Cup for many years, contributing to promotion of the team to the World Group.
Nicola Pietrangeli's importance for Italian tennis is enormous. He paved the way for the future successes of Italian tennis players, proving that Italian players can reach the highest level in international tennis.
He inspired a generation of Italian tennis players and helped develop tennis in his country.
After retiring from competitive activity, Nicola Pietrangeli worked as a coach and played an important role in the training of young Italian tennis players.
He was also president of the Italian Tennis Federation from 1999 to 2008.
In 1986 he was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame and is still considered an icon of Italian tennis today. His career and successes are an example of talent, determination and dedication in sport.