From Beano di Codroipo in Friuli, she brings humility and self-sacrifice with her into the pool, typical traits of those who come from a small provincial town. For arriving amongst the best in swimming, she is used to often travelling between Spain and Italy for training. "Mizzy" obtained a scientific high school diploma and started swimming aged two years and has never looked back since, even when almost all her peers opted for dance. In her free time, she reads and cooks, especially cakes and desserts. In Rio, the twenty-four-year-old will take on the first leg of the 4x200 freestyle relay, for which the team won gold at the 2014 European Championships and silver at the 2015 World Championships, ready to immortalise the occasion with a great result. When all is said and done, she was the athlete who had the courage to snatch the first "selfie" of the seven-year term of President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella.