In the golden year of Italian sport, the President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella, appointed Giovanni Malagò a Knight of the Grand Cross. The highest honor conferred by the Presidency of the Republic was given to the president of Coni da Mattarella, at the Quirinale, before the ceremony with the passing of the tricolor flag, in view of the Beijing 2022 Games, to Sofia Goggia and Giacomo Bertagnolli.
The merit was also attributed to the president of the Italian Paralympic Committee, Luca Pancalli. Another testimony of President Mattarella’s extraordinary closeness to Italian sport, at the end of an unforgettable year for the entire movement. Malagò underlined his «great honor for having been awarded the highest recognition of the Presidency of the Republic, an honor that I share with my beloved world. Proud of sport, proud of being Italian ».