Asteroid named after Jannik Sinner

An asteroid has been named after

Italian tennis player Jannik Sinner since last night.

The Working Group on Small Bodies Nomenclature (WGDBN) of the

International Astronomical Union (IAU) has ratified the

assignment of the Italian champion's name to an asteroid

orbiting in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter,

adding it to the official bulletin. Discovered on March 10,

2003, at the Campo Imperatore Observatory by a Tuscan team, the

asteroid will officially be named '(120097) Janniksinner'.

The dedication, at the suggestion of the Montelupo Fiorentino

Amateur Astronomers Group (Florence), was requested by two of

its discoverers: astronomer Fabrizio Bernardi, who works at

Space Dynamics Services, a spin-off of the University of Pisa

and discovered the famous asteroid 99942 Apophis, and Maura

Tombelli, astronomer and director of the Montelupo Fiorentino

Observatory.

"We wanted to dedicate this asteroid to Jannik Sinner," the two

astronomers said, "not only for his extraordinary sporting

successes, which are bringing Italy to the top of the tennis

world, but also for the values of resilience, fairness, and

absolute dedication he embodies on and off the court.

"Like a comet or a fixed celestial body, Sinner represents a

shining beacon for new generations.

From today, his greatness is written among the stars."

This is the official text of the quote approved by the IAU:

"Jannik Sinner (b. 2001) is an Italian tennis player who is one

of the world's top tennis players. He has won the Australian

Open twice, Wimbledon, and the US Open, and twice been a member

of the winning team for the Davis Cup".

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