Sport in mourning: journalist Elena Pero, the voice of tennis who accompanied generations, has died

The world of Italian sport loses one of its brightest milestones. Elena Pero passed away at the age of 60 after an illness faced with exemplary rigor and confidentiality. Having joined Telepiù in 1991 thanks to Rino Tommasi, she wrote fundamental pages of national television sports journalism. In over 35 years of career spent first at the original broadcaster and then at Sky Sport, she has been able to establish herself in a sector traditionally dominated by men thanks to an encyclopedic preparation and an unmistakable stylistic signature, made of restraint, elegance and total absence of rhetoric.

The partnership with Paolo Bertolucci and the latest masterpiece at Wimbledon

The public has identified it for over two decades as the soundtrack of great tennis, above all thanks to the formidable tandem formed with Paolo Bertolucci. Together they commented on the most epic matches broadcast by television networks, becoming an essential point of reference for millions of fans. His absolute dedication to the profession manifested itself without slowing down even in the hardest months of his illness: his last appearance behind the microphone took place on the prestigious lawn of Wimbledon, where he spoke in an emotional but always measured voice about Jannik Sinner’s second consecutive victory of the tournament.

An unmistakable voice with a reserved life

Behind the scenes of the television success there was a woman deeply linked to her family, starting with her husband Sergio Velli, an appreciated Sky Sport producer who constantly supported her even on fields all over the world, and her daughter Martina. The Italian Tennis and Padel Federation, colleagues and viewers mourn today an unmistakable voice capable of enhancing every single word without ever dominating the spectacle of the court. His clean style, far from the shouty models of social networks, will forever remain an essential training model for future generations of sports journalists.