Wentworth Under 30: CEO Pinto is Fueling Athletes and Communities
Felipe Pinto (left) is the CEO and founder of Elite Hydration, as well as the creator of nonprofit Ventura Damon Youth Sports Foundation
Wentworth Under 30: They are entrepreneurs, innovators, and leaders — and they are just getting started. In this new ongoing series, we highlight exceptional alumni under the age of 30 who are redefining what is possible in their fields. Representing every school at the university, these graduates prove that age is no barrier to making a global impact.
"We rise by lifting others." That's not a tagline for one of Felipe Pinto's two businesses. Rather, it's a summation of how the 2025 Wentworth Institute of Technology graduate leads his life, personally and professionally.
Pinto is the CEO and founder of Elite Hydration, a clean-label sports drink designed to support both athletic performance and everyday wellness. Elite is made with all-natural, globally trusted ingredients and contains no artificial colors, dyes, sweeteners, or preservatives.
A portion of Elite's partnerships helps fund the Ventura Damon Youth Sports Foundation (VDYSF), Pinto's nonprofit organization that provides uniforms, equipment, and safe places to play for underserved youth across New England.
Entrepreneurship in His DNA
Pinto, the child of Brazilian immigrants, is a native of Brockton, Massachusetts. Wentworth's proximity to his home was attractive, but the appeal went deeper than that.
"It's a prestigious school that's really diverse," he said. "And I saw the co-ops as an opportunity to apply fundamental lessons that I learned in classes to real-world scenarios while still obtaining my degree within a four-year timeframe."
Pinto studied Business Management at Wentworth with dual minors in Applied Mathematics and Electrical Engineering. His mother, who built and runs a small full-time residential cleaning business, inspired him to focus on entrepreneurship.
"Growing up, I saw the hustle she put into her work," he said. "As a first-generation college student, I was aware of how much she and my father sacrificed for me and the rest of our family. I didn't take that for granted; even now, I try to make them proud every day."
'That's Not a Healthy Society'
In 2022, the same year he made the Wentworth soccer team, Pinto launched Elite. As a student-athlete, he understood the need for a beverage that would deliver essential electrolytes, vitamins, and minerals without the excess sugar and unhealthy ingredients commonly found in popular sports drinks.
"A 2019 Harvard study projected that 50% of adults in the U.S. would be obese by 2030," he said. "That's not a healthy society. Trying to change that was my motivation for starting Elite."
Pinto first developed the idea for the drink as a sophomore. He has since brought it to reality, working with some of the top formulators in the country to create the beverage's recipe while building relationships with a wide range of suppliers and manufacturers. He is now partnering with athletic departments, including Wentworth's, to deliver products that align with modern global health standards and the evolving expectations of today's athletes.
In 2025, Pinto founded VDYSF and launched a pilot program at his alma mater West Middle School in Brockton to provide the soccer team with new uniforms, training tops, and equipment. He plans to scale the pilot to all Brockton middle schools over the next five years.
"The initiative shows students that someone is thinking about them and that they matter," he said. "The uniforms in particular indicate that they're now part of a team — and that comes with a responsibility to your teammates and coaches."
Grateful for His Mentors at Wentworth
For the time being, Pinto runs Elite on his own and VDYSF along with a few colleagues. On any given day, you might find him tackling a variety of tasks, from processing an order from an athletic department to reviewing the paperwork for a proposed mini–soccer pitch in Brockton in partnership with the U.S. Soccer Foundation.
It all makes for busy, hectic workdays. He has been preparing for this since joining Wentworth's Accelerate Co-op for Entrepreneurs (ACE) Program, where he first started working on Elite. Through ACE, he received funding, mentorship, business knowledge, and support from faculty, staff, and fellow students.
"Being an entrepreneur is an experience I won't ever regret," Pinto said. "I'm grateful that I've had the opportunity to go through it and to create long-term sustainability for both businesses and impact beyond my lifetime."
Pinto has established an 18-month operating plan for Elite that aims to raise $1M+ in seed funding. His key goals for this period include landing over 100 retail and campus contracts and reaching $850,000 in revenue for 2026. Meeting these milestones would allow him to scale VDYSF across New England, expand into high schools, and, ultimately, build dedicated community facilities.
Reflecting on his time at Wentworth, Pinto is grateful to have found mentors like:
- President Mark A. Thompson, PhD
- Associate Professors Michael Mozill, Hollis Greenberg, and Santiago Umaschi
- Accelerate Makerspace Lead Lab Technician Tory Lam
- Accelerate Executive Director Ashley Lucas
- Entrepreneur in Residence Michael Santora, Architectural Engineering Technology '05
Pinto encourages current students to seek out mentors and build a network of people who actively want to support and empower them.
"Lean on those around you at Wentworth, whether it's professors, classmates, or lab technicians," he said. "A lot of people there are ready to help you become a successful person, no matter how you define success for yourself."
Read more in the Wentworth Under 30 series: