SINGAPORE - He has been training with his father since he was seven years old, but on Aug 20, Stevson Lim, 14, will participate in a race with him for the first time.

"I'm very excited and looking forward to the experience," said Stevson, who runs 4.8km with his father and younger sister thrice a week.

The teen is one of 50 runners comprising students from the National Cadet Corps (NCC) and their operationally ready national servicemen (NSmen) fathers, who will be running together for the first time at this year's Safra Singapore Bay Run and Army Half Marathon.

They will take part in the NS50 Team Run category of the event on Aug 20.

The run has five main categories: the 21km Army Half Marathon, the Safra 10km race, the NS50 5km team run which involves a group of 10, the Safra 5km fun run, and the Families for Life 800m challenge.

In its 25th edition this year, the run will commemorate 50 years of national service with new initiatives announced at a preview held at Safra Toa Payoh on Wednesday (June 21).

These include street-side festivities such as giant inflatables which mimic standard obstacle courses, such as inflatable stepping stones that will be placed along the 5km route for the event's Safra fun run.

Another inflatable course will feature the Ditch, Window, Dodging Panels and Tunnel obstacles at the post-run carnival at the Padang.

There will also be a tyre flipping activity for families, where parents will be challenged to flip the heavy tyres of the Army's five-tonne truck. Children can try lifting lighter tyres.

Families can don army-themed attire in the Families for Life 800m Challenge. Participants will receive event tees featuring the Army's pixelated camouflage design, and camouflage cream and jockey caps will be provided to children at the start point.

Other activities include dance and music performances.

Participants of the team run category, introduced this year for NS50, will also receive NS50 commemorative medals.

Participants can also look forward to improved running routes. Each run will commence half an hour earlier to give runners more time to enjoy the post-race activities.

More starting pens will be put up for crowd regulation.

The new route will also have fewer narrow segments, to ensure the smoother movement of runners, and include more stretches along East Coast Park.

More than 27,000 participants have signed up for this year's run so far.