Emily Joyner took the podium in the Caputo Cup Championship in Naples, Italy—the birthplace of pizza.
Last June, pizza makers and pizzeria owners from around the world gathered in Naples for the 2025 Caputo Cup, an annual competition honoring multiple styles of pizza.
Emily Joyner, a sophomore at BYU-Idaho, traveled from Rexburg to compete in the Traditional American Division of the championship.
During the Caputo Cup, participants were given 20 minutes to prepare their pizzas before they were evaluated by a panel of judges.
At the end of each competition day, the winners of each category were announced.
Joyner stood in the crowd as the second- and third-place winners in her division took the podium. Then, in a flurry of Italian, she heard her name being called.
“I didn't think I could win. I just was like, ‘I'm just going to have fun. I'm just going to go do this thing,’” she said.
Joyner has worked as a pizzaiola at a Rexburg pizzeria Righteous Slice for the last two years, and this was her second time participating in a pizza championship.
The experience grew her confidence and helped her realize that she can do hard things—especially with her academic and career goals as a biology student.
Taking first place meant even more to Joyner, especially because she had to take a break from her schooling due to extenuating circumstances.
“It's really easy to just quit, and I thought about quitting,” she said.
But with the support of her store manager and professors, Joyner returned to BYU-Idaho.
“Regardless of whether that's not in food science, I knew I wanted to graduate. I love it here. It's such a positive experience, and it feels like I should be here,” she said.
Joyner plans on having a career in radiology or research, but she doesn’t rule out pizza from her future—she even considers managing a pizza place down the line.