Dear Host Family! My name is Matvey, and I am from Russia. Thank you very much for considering me for an academic year in the United States! I would like to tell you about myself and my interests and hobbies. Currently I am in the 9th grade. My most important after-school activity is Athletics/Running. I train three times a week on the track and two times a week in a park. I have been training since the age of six, at the beginning with my Dad and now with a state-sponsored running club. I also like watching athletics competitions. My favorite runner is Eliud Kipchoge of Kenya. I watched him run in Paris at the 2024 Olympic Games, when my Dad took me and my older sister Katia to the Olympics. I even got to run alongside Eliud Kipchoge and the marathoners' group on the streets of Paris, keeping up with their pace, if only for 200 meters. I know that the USA is a very sports-loving country. I would love to continue my athletics training while in the U.S. I have been learning English since I was four years old. I learn English at school and with my teachers from other countries. I have also been learning Spanish for the past seven years and I speak Spanish fluently. Yo puedo hablar y leer en Espanol muy bien! In addition, I have aslo been learning French for the past four years, and I can speak and read French at the intermediate level. I think that an academic year in the US would be a wonderful opportunity for me to meet people and experience the American way of life. America is the greatest country in science, technology, education, sports. Spending a year with your family would allow me to see it firthand. I go to school Monday to Friday and I typically have 7 – 8 lessons every day. After school, three times a week I train in athletics on the track. This leaves me limited time to do my school homework so I have to be very focused. On Saturdays and Sundays I do long runs with my running group and my Mom and Dad and our dog, a labrador retriever. In addition, I take private lessons in Spanish and French four times a week. In the brakes at school and in my free time, I like playing chess. I play with my Dad and my school mates. Also, as I mentioned, we have a dog at home, chocolate labrador retriever named Belle. She is my dear lovely pet. I love her very much, and on weekends, I walk her in a park or run with her. She is also fond of running, just like me! On weekends, we sometimes invite Katia, my older sister, for lunch with us. Mom cooks something special on those days. Katia has been living separately since she turned eighteen (she is now almost 23 years old). She has recently graduated from a university with a degree in marketing, and she has also been working part time for the past two years. I do not get to see her very often because she has her own adult life, and she has a busy schedule. Yet, in August 2024 our Dad took us both to Paris to watch the Olympic Games and to admire Paris and we enjoyed our time together very much! Currently I am in the 9th grade at my school. I am applying to go to the US for the academic year 2026 – 2027, and after that I plan to come back to Russia and continue with my school in the 11th grade. In Russia, after eleven grades students typically apply to universities. I am planning to apply to universities either in the U.S. or in Spain. At the moment I think I would like to study finance and economics, but of course I have a few more years to make up or change my mind. An academic year in the US will be the best preparation for my future studies, as the United States is one of the best countries for this! It has a highly developed economic system, and I would love to see it firsthand. I would be very grateful if I could participate in this program to experience the American people, culture, and sports. I am certain we will have a great time together, playing, running, and talking! I am looking forward to the opportunity to meet you and make friends! With best regards from Russia, Matvey