By: DANIELA PEREZ LEAL / CHIEF ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR
Coming from Valencia, Venezuela, 22-year-old swimmer Fabrizio Infante continues to swim under the shark’s water. Wearing the LIU blue and gold colors, the senior started his last season as a student athlete.
“I decided to come to America because I consider it has the best swimming programs in the world and I have been swimming since I was a child, so I had the dream to come here and pursue my career as a student-athlete,” Infante said.
Even though he is proudly a shark now, his career started at Chowan University in North Carolina, allowing him to come to the US in 2021 and continue his career until his sophomore year in 2022.
“I chose Chowan in North Carolina because it was a perfect start for me and they offered me a full-ride scholarship, so it was the best opportunity for me at that time. Also, I wanted to study Accounting and their program was really good,” Infante expressed.
Chowan honored Infante as one of the student-athletes with a higher GPA and allowed him to lead his team as the captain and a representative for the International Student Club.
Later in 2023, after two years at Chowan, the swimmer decided to transfer to the College of Saint Rose in Albany, New York, since he wanted to advance in his career and change his major from Accounting to Finance.
“After being an accounting student for two years, I found out I wanted to pursue a finance degree and Chowan does not have that program. For that reason I realized I had to transfer and also my family wanted me to be closer to the north, specifically in the New Jersey and New York area. In 2023 I got a full-ride scholarship offer at Saint Rose and their finance and swimming program was good so I just took the opportunity,” Fabrizio stated.
At Saint Rose, Infante continued to stand out as a great student and swimmer, maintaining a 3.9 GPA and he was tied for the most podium/medal wins by any male athlete at the 2024 Northeast 10 Championships, including three individual medals.
Despite his great journey at Saint Rose, on November 30, 2023, the college announced its closure at the end of the spring of 2024, an event that once again drove Infante to the transfer portal.
“It was a tough moment for me because I expected to graduate from Saint Rose and transferring again was not in my plans. When that happened it shocked me, but in life sometimes you have to deal with this kind of unexpected situation. So, I decided to take that hard moment as a challenge and an opportunity to grow and quickly I started to find another college,” said the swimmer.
The fun story started here because before he decided to transfer to Saint Rose in 2023, he also talked to LIU and found a really good connection here with the team in general. Unfortunately, things didn't work out at the time and he had to choose his best offer.
In 2024, entering for the second time the NCAA transfer portal, LIU offered him a better scholarship and this led him to start a new journey as a Shark at LIU Brooklyn, debuting for the first time at the NCAA Division I level and continuing his finance major.
“When I was in the process of finding a new home, LIU came to my mind as a first option and I reached out to them again and fortunately this time everything worked out,” Infante expressed.
So far his journey at LIU has been filled with joy and happiness. Since Infante loves New York, he has embraced the opportunity to network around the city, among other important events for his finance career.
“I do believe that everything happens for a reason and God’s timing is perfect. I am really happy to be here at LIU and one of my goals was to be in New York City so I am very thankful for that and for my team,” said Infante.
In the same way, Infante has been adapting to a new culture very well, even though as he described this can be one of the challenges that an international student has to face. He has been trying to enjoy every step of the path and also all the fun things he can do here in the city.
“Understanding that you are in a new country with a new culture is key, however trying to take this as an opportunity to grow and trust in God’s plan is important. I am enjoying my time in this country and being in this city is great because you can do many fun things around,” Infante stated.
On the other hand, coming from a country that is facing so many problems regarding economics and politics, Infante understands the importance of being a role model for the future generations who are looking at him and are trying to chase their dream despite the obstacles. For that reason he is always looking for ways to spread a positive message and show his community that everything is possible if you work hard for it.
“Living one day at a time and focusing on what you are doing today is key. If you have a dream or goal you want to achieve, you should work hard for it and not allow any obstacle or adversity to take you out of that path you want to build. I went through so many situations where the resources were not there but I never gave up, thanks to that I am here today and that is something I want others to see and learn from me,” expressed Infante.
Smiling and laughing, Infante expressed that one of the best things he will always have in his heart is all the good memories that came from all the people he has been meeting along his journey, people who became family and helped him fight hard for his dreams.
“The best memories for me are all the people I have met during my journey here. Those people who have been by my side will always be in my heart and I respect them all, they became my family,” he said.
Perseverance, enthusiasm and resilience to face every obstacle are some of the words that describe this incredible swimmer who continues working hard and shining.
With graduation just around the corner, Infante is excited to see what is next and enjoy the process of self-discovery that awaits him before and after graduation in May 2025.
“I am excited to see what is next and enjoy the path of self-discovery that awaits me because that process has to be fun. I do not know if I want to do a master degree or just start to work but for sure I want to enjoy the process and take one day at a time,” Fabrizio expressed.
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