Michele Bianchi '22 Recruiting Profile

I was born in Italy and when I was 3 years old I moved with my family to Brussels, in Belgium, where I completed my primary studies and started high school. Living in Brussels, I got the opportunity to become a mother tongue in French (I am also an Italian native speaker). Eventually, I became one of the best students of the school, trying to balance my school commitment with my free time, playing soccer in the Belgian league, and also being captain of the team. 

At that time, as I did not speak any English, I decided to take on the adventure and complete my High School in the USA. However, due to the Covid-19 situation, the plan had to change. The most feasible and practical alternative was to move to Germany, where my father lives, and to study the International Baccalaureate at the Leipzig International School. This opportunity has given me the chance to attend English based classes, which was extremely challenging for me. I knew that it was a matter of patience and those difficulties would eventually turn into a strength. Moreover, I did not abandon my original plan and I still wanted to pursue a year of study in a USA boarding school. Currently, I am at Saint John’s Preparatory School in Minnesota to complete the IB program and graduate in May 2022. 

Living and studying in four countries and two continents gave me the unique chance to broaden my cultural and international horizons, especially in the soccer fields where I could compete with players from all over the world, benefit from different approaches to soccer and get different perspectives about game tactics and schemes.