Unseeded Gaston Gaudio fought back from two sets down and saved two match points before edging past fellow-Argentine Guillermo Coria 0-6 3-6 6-4 6-1 8-6 to win the French Open this afternoon.
Coria had dominated the opening two sets of the first all-Argentine final in grand slam history but he was struck down by cramps in the fourth set, which allowed his opponent back into the contest.
Although the fifth set was a tense battle of nerves, Gaudio had the final say after three hours and 31 minutes.
"Since I was a kid, this was a dream for me but now that I'm here, it's just too much for me and I don't know what to say," a stunned Gaudio told the Centre Court crowd.
"I was so scared in the first two sets but because of all the crowd support, I came back and was able to fight a little bit more.
"Coria played unbelievable tennis for the two weeks, I'm sure he's going to get it next year."
Gaudio, ranked 44th in the world, became the second Argentine to win at Roland Garros, 27 years after Guillermo Vilas.
Vilas, after whom Coria had been named, was the last Argentine man to win a singles grand slam crown at the Australian Open in 1979.
Third seed Coria was the overwhelming favourite for the title having won 37 out of 38 matches on the surface following his surprise defeat by Dutchman Martin Verkerk at the French Open semi-finals last year.