Why Italy and Man City star Donnarumma received an award in Coverciano

Italy captain Gianluigi Donnarumma was presented with the ‘Building Kindness in Sport’ Award on Tuesday in recognition of a charitable gesture linked to his wedding.

The Manchester City and Italy star received an Ambassador jersey on Tuesday, shortly before press conferences by Alphadjo Cisse and Mattia Liberali.

Gaia Simonetti conceived the award, which resulted from a collaboration between USSI Toscana and Costruiamo Gentilezza, an association founded by Luca Nardi.

Donnarumma was selected as the award winner after he asked his wedding guests last summer to donate to support young patients at a hospital in Naples rather than giving gifts to him and his wife.

The ‘Building Kindness in Sport’ initiative was launched in 2022, inspired by another Italian goalkeeper, Guglielmo Vicario, who welcomed a family fleeing the Russia-Ukraine war into his home in 2022.

Donnarumma received the jersey, designed by children who regularly help identify and highlight special acts of kindness in the world of sports.

Printed on the back of the jersey is one of Nelson Mandela’s most famous quotes: “Sport has the power to change the world.”