Viewing her connection to her Italian heritage as a superpower, Dolores Alfieri has devoted most of her professional career to celebrating those strong ties. From working as director of Italian affairs for the Office of the Governor of the State of New York to co-developing a podcast that celebrates the Italian-American experience, Dolores Alfieri’s professional and creative endeavors are a testament to her belief that a strong connection to one’s heritage is “a superpower.” Alfieri was instrumental in securing a place on the National Register of Historic Places for the Columbus statue in New York City’s Columbus Circle. Her work …

A standout running back at St. Ignatius College Prep in Chicago, Vinny Rugai eschews social media while he works to perfect his football skills. Vinny Rugai is not the kind of football player who wants to attract attention and gain social media followers. Instead, the 18-year-old believes in working hard and plugging away at his goals. That attitude has resulted in Rugai first forging a path as a standout high school athlete and now as a freshman at Fordham University in New York, where he was a preferred walk-on. “I am pretty driven, but I am also one of those …

On skis since she was barely walking, Marta Bassino has hurtled to the top of the sport, notching countless podium visits on the local, regional, national and international levels. After first stepping into skis when she wasn’t even 2 years old, Marta Bassino grew up whizzing down slopes in her native Northern Italy, perfectly at home on the snow. “It was always something very natural,” the 27-year-old says of her sport. “When you start so little, it becomes normal. It feels normal.” Over the years, her talent and hard work catapulted Bassino, a native of Borgo San Dalmazzo in the …

An award-winning anchor and reporter for WGN-TV, Dina Bair leads a fulfilling triple life as a cancer crusader and mom of four. As a little girl growing up in suburban Philadelphia, Dina Bair liked to pretend to be a journalist and narrate accident scenes for imagined TV cameras while riding in her mother’s car. Her role model was broadcast journalist Diane Sawyer, who inspired her to pursue a journalism degree at Northwestern University and forge an award-winning career at WGN-TV in Chicago. Bair is an anchor for WGN Midday News and the medical reporter for WGN Evening News, as well …

A recreational water skier since grade school, Tina Grossi recently took home gold in ski slalom in the 55- to 59-year-old division of the amateur national championship. As the top seed in her age division for water ski slalom at the amateur national championships last year, Tina Grossi was the last one on the water, making her acutely aware of how well her competitors had performed. “Top seed can be both a blessing and a curse. It was a relief when the ski ride was over,” says the 57-year-old Californian, who aced her performance in the women’s 55- to 59-year-old …

A major force in youth soccer in Italy, Lorenzo Boselli is now making waves on the university level in America. Lorenzo Boselli will never forget being first in line to kick in the penalty shootout for Syracuse University at the NCAA men’s soccer Division I national championship game in December. Boselli, a midfielder, had played the first 90 minutes but sat out the extra time. It was a cold winter day, his body was cooling down and the opposing team, Indiana University, had converted its first penalty. “I was twice as nervous,” he says. “Fortunately, I scored.” Syracuse ended up …

Passionate about auto racing since his go-kart days as a kid, Chip Ganassi has emerged as a dominant force on most of the sport’s major racetracks. After more than 30 years in car racing, Chip Ganassi boasts an impressive resume. The team he owns has won the Indianapolis 500, Daytona 500, Brickyard 400, Rolex 24 at Daytona, 12 Hours of Sebring and 24 Hours of Le Mans. The 64-year-old is owner and CEO of Chip Ganassi Racing, which operates teams in the IndyCar Series, WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, FIA World Endurance Championship and Extreme-E off-road racing. The enterprise has corporate offices …

A standout wrestler in high school and now college, Carter Starocci success has been driven by his dauntless work ethic. There are competitive people — and then there is Carter Starocci. The 21-year-old junior at Pennsylvania State University is the reigning two-time NCAA champion wrestler in the 174-pound weight class. In October, he took home a bronze medal in the freestyle 79-kilogram category at the U-23 World Championships in Spain. Staroccci has his sights set on many more victories, including NCAA titles, a world championship and an Olympic gold. Then, he plans to embark on a career competing in the …

Among the best in the rarified and highly dangerous world of speed skiing, Ivan and Simone Origone risk life and limb to hurtle down slopes at close to 160 miles per hour. Two Italian brothers are trailblazers in speed skiing, often described as the fastest non-motorized sport on Earth. Simone Origone, 43, is the most decorated speed skier of all time, with a resume that encompasses 13 World Cup wins, including the last one in 2022. His brother, Ivan, 35, holds the speed skiing world record, which he set in 2016 at 158.424 miles per hour. Speed skiing takes place …

A member of the Chicago Red Stars for her entire professional career, Vanessa DiBernardo has notched the team record for minutes played while setting her sights on a so-far elusive league championship. For Vanessa DiBernardo, the path to professional soccer involved honing her strong technical skills under the guidance of her father. The 30-year-old is a midfielder for the Chicago Red Stars in the National Women’s Soccer League. A native of Naperville, Illinois, she attended the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, which inducted her into its athletics hall of fame in 2020. Her father, Angelo DiBernardo, was a professional soccer …