diff --git a/CACHING.md b/CACHING.md
index 4e28daf1..d27c8c15 100644
--- a/CACHING.md
+++ b/CACHING.md
@@ -179,6 +179,8 @@ SqlSugar automatically generates cache keys based on:
 - Query parameters
 - Table names
 
+For hot hackathon endpoints, explicitly defined cache keys are used via `.WithCache("...")` (for example `hackathon:details:{id}` and `hackathon:public-list`) to make cache intent easier to understand while preserving table-based invalidation. Public details keys also normalize the route token (`Guid` as `"D"` format, short code lowercased) so equivalent requests map to the same key.
+
 **User-Specific Data**: Queries with `WHERE userId = {userId}` get unique cache keys per user, providing natural isolation.
 
 **Navigation Properties**: Queries using `.Includes()` for navigation properties should **NOT** use `.WithCache()` as SqlSugar's caching doesn't properly serialize/deserialize navigation properties. Load related entities separately or use explicit joins instead.
diff --git a/HackOMania.Api/Endpoints/Organizers/Hackathon/Get/Endpoint.cs b/HackOMania.Api/Endpoints/Organizers/Hackathon/Get/Endpoint.cs
index f043d686..dceb7bd7 100644
--- a/HackOMania.Api/Endpoints/Organizers/Hackathon/Get/Endpoint.cs
+++ b/HackOMania.Api/Endpoints/Organizers/Hackathon/Get/Endpoint.cs
@@ -22,9 +22,10 @@ public override void Configure()
 
     public override async Task HandleAsync(Request req, CancellationToken ct)
     {
+        var hackathonCacheKey = $"hackathon:details:{req.HackathonId}";
         var hackathon = await sql.Queryable<HackathonEntity>()
             .Where(h => h.Id == req.HackathonId)
-            .WithCache()
+            .WithCache(hackathonCacheKey)
             .FirstAsync(ct);
 
         if (hackathon is null)
@@ -35,7 +36,7 @@ public override async Task HandleAsync(Request req, CancellationToken ct)
 
         var emailTemplates = await sql.Queryable<HackathonNotificationTemplate>()
             .Where(t => t.HackathonId == hackathon.Id)
-            .WithCache()
+            .WithCache($"hackathon:details:{hackathon.Id}:notification-templates")
             .ToListAsync(ct);
         var emailTemplateMap = emailTemplates
             .GroupBy(t => t.EventKey, StringComparer.OrdinalIgnoreCase)
diff --git a/HackOMania.Api/Endpoints/Organizers/Hackathon/List/Endpoint.cs b/HackOMania.Api/Endpoints/Organizers/Hackathon/List/Endpoint.cs
index 2df0a029..abf78e59 100644
--- a/HackOMania.Api/Endpoints/Organizers/Hackathon/List/Endpoint.cs
+++ b/HackOMania.Api/Endpoints/Organizers/Hackathon/List/Endpoint.cs
@@ -41,12 +41,12 @@ public override async Task HandleAsync(CancellationToken ct)
             );
         }
 
-        var hackathons = await query.WithCache().ToListAsync(ct);
+        var hackathons = await query.WithCache($"hackathon:organizer-list:{userId.Value}").ToListAsync(ct);
         var hackathonIds = hackathons.Select(h => h.Id).ToList();
 
         var templates = await sql.Queryable<HackathonNotificationTemplate>()
             .Where(t => hackathonIds.Contains(t.HackathonId))
-            .WithCache()
+            .WithCache($"hackathon:organizer-list:{userId.Value}:notification-templates")
             .ToListAsync(ct);
         var templatesByHackathon = templates
             .GroupBy(t => t.HackathonId)
diff --git a/HackOMania.Api/Endpoints/Participants/Hackathon/Get/Endpoint.cs b/HackOMania.Api/Endpoints/Participants/Hackathon/Get/Endpoint.cs
index bd87d413..f760fe1a 100644
--- a/HackOMania.Api/Endpoints/Participants/Hackathon/Get/Endpoint.cs
+++ b/HackOMania.Api/Endpoints/Participants/Hackathon/Get/Endpoint.cs
@@ -19,12 +19,28 @@ public override void Configure()
 
     public override async Task HandleAsync(Request req, CancellationToken ct)
     {
+        var requestedToken = (req.HackathonIdOrShortCode ?? string.Empty).Trim();
+        if (string.IsNullOrWhiteSpace(requestedToken))
+        {
+            await Send.NotFoundAsync(ct);
+            return;
+        }
+        var isGuidToken = Guid.TryParse(requestedToken, out var parsedHackathonId);
+        var normalizedShortCode = requestedToken.ToLower();
+        var cacheKeySegment = isGuidToken
+            ? parsedHackathonId.ToString("D")
+            : normalizedShortCode;
+        var hackathonCacheKey = $"hackathon:public-details:{cacheKeySegment}";
         var hackathon = await sql.Queryable<Entities.Hackathon>()
             .Where(h =>
-                h.Id.ToString() == req.HackathonIdOrShortCode
-                || h.ShortCode == req.HackathonIdOrShortCode
+                (isGuidToken && h.Id == parsedHackathonId)
+                || (
+                    !isGuidToken
+                    && h.ShortCode != null
+                    && SqlFunc.ToLower(h.ShortCode) == normalizedShortCode
+                )
             )
-            .WithCache()
+            .WithCache(hackathonCacheKey)
             .FirstAsync(ct);
 
         if (hackathon is null || !hackathon.IsPublished)
diff --git a/HackOMania.Api/Endpoints/Participants/Hackathon/List/Endpoint.cs b/HackOMania.Api/Endpoints/Participants/Hackathon/List/Endpoint.cs
index 8cdd9a88..3a4409ed 100644
--- a/HackOMania.Api/Endpoints/Participants/Hackathon/List/Endpoint.cs
+++ b/HackOMania.Api/Endpoints/Participants/Hackathon/List/Endpoint.cs
@@ -21,7 +21,7 @@ public override async Task HandleAsync(CancellationToken ct)
     {
         var hackathons = await sql.Queryable<Entities.Hackathon>()
             .Where(h => h.IsPublished)
-            .WithCache()
+            .WithCache("hackathon:public-list")
             .ToListAsync(ct);
 
         await Send.OkAsync(