Hello everyone! My name is Yerassyl, and I'm excited to join the KAEF community with my project, PaceUp. Over the month of June, my main focus was preparing for the UNT, which I completed on July 2nd. After taking time to reflect on my original project idea, I decided to pursue a new direction—one with greater long-term potential and a stronger impact on student and amateur sports. Why did I apply for the KAEF Grant? For me, the KAEF Grant is much more than financial support. It is an opportunity to learn from experienced alumni, collaborate with ambitious students, and develop a project that can create real value beyond the university. I believe KIMEP is the right place to turn an idea into something practical, and I want PaceUp to become one of the projects that grows together with this community over the next years. What problem does my project solve? Student and amateur sports are still managed through spreadsheets, group chats, and manual coordination. Organizers spend hours handling registrations, schedules, and tournament brackets, while athletes often lose track of their achievements once a competition is over. PaceUp is designed to bring everything together in one platform. It will help organizers manage competitions more efficiently while giving athletes a secure digital profile where they can keep their verified results, achievements, and competition history in one place. What have I already done? Although development has only recently begun, the research phase is already underway. I analyzed several existing platforms used in international competitions, including Chess-Results and the International Boxing Association, to understand how tournaments are currently managed and where users experience the biggest difficulties. To better understand these challenges from the people who experience them firsthand, I also conducted phone-call interviews with a 30+ chess tournament organizer and an official IBA boxing coach in my region. During our conversations, we discussed the practical difficulties of organizing competitions, managing participants, and keeping accurate records. These insights helped confirm that the problems I had identified were real and worth solving. The next step is to continue this research through surveys and interviews with athletes, coaches, and organizers before building the first working version of PaceUp. What will I be able to do with the KAEF Grant? The grant would allow me to move from research to implementation by developing the first prototype of PaceUp, testing it during student competitions at KIMEP, working with students from different disciplines, and building partnerships with sports organizations that share the same vision. I believe the best projects begin by listening. This project is still at the beginning of its journey, which means every conversation, suggestion, and different perspective can make it stronger. My goal is not simply to build another application, but to create something that genuinely improves the experience of student and amateur sports in Kazakhstan. If you have ever organized a tournament, coached a team, competed as an athlete, or worked on a startup or digital product, what challenge do you think is most often overlooked? I'd truly appreciate hearing your thoughts in the comments!