A tutu and trainers will be essential elements of six-year-old Amely Sofea's princess outfit on Nov 13, when she participates in the Princess Dash with her mother at the Great Eastern Women's Run (GEWR).
The event, which made its debut at the last edition of the GEWR, saw 500 girls aged between three and nine make a 100m dash for a Finishers' Tiara awaiting them at the finish line.
For a minimum donation of $5 to the event's beneficiaries - the Breast Cancer Foundation and the Women's Health Research and Education Fund - runners will receive a tutu in the beneficiaries' respective colours and are encouraged to don them on race day.
It is sports with a sparkle - and mothers have seized this opportunity to encourage their young daughters to get active.
"My daughter is into a lot of princess-themed things, and I want to encourage her to be more sporty," said Zamilla Ma'Amin, Amely's mother. "Running can be pretty boring, but the princess theme of the 100m dash is something that relates to her."
A drama teacher, Zamilla, 34, hopes that Amely will enjoy the run and is encouraging her to "role play as a princess" in various scenarios, such as running away from an evil villain.
"You have to make it very fun for them," said Rachel Lee, who will be participating in the Princess Dash with her three-year-old daughter Sophie. "Girls generally like princess stuff and will be excited by the tutus."
As first-time participants in the Princess Dash, Zamilla and Lee hope that the experience will start Amely and Sophie off on the right foot.
Lee, 33, hopes that the experience of running together as a mother-daughter team will motivate Sophie to pick up sports as a habit.
She said: "I'm hoping that if Sophie sees me run, she will follow. If we do the same sports, we can spend more time together and I'll be able to lead by example."
Registration for this year's GEWR, which flags off at The Float@Marina Bay, started on Monday. A total of 500 places are available.
Participants can register online for the Princess Dash at www.greateasternlife.com/ greateasternwomensrun until Sept 30.
