Each athlete will complete two legs of just over 10 kilometres each, alternating male, female, male, female, World Athletics announced.

The marathon distance was selected because of its existing popularity in athletics and link to the traditions of the Olympic Games.

The event, scheduled to take place at 7.30am on August 7 next year, is due to be held on the same course as the individual race walking events, at the foot of the Eiffel Tower in central Paris, and will be completed in about three hours. 

The event will replace the men's 50km race walk, dropped following its last appearance at the re-arranged 2020 Olympics in Tokyo when Poland's Dawid Tomala won the gold medal, in order to achieve gender equality. 

The 50km race walk had appeared on the programme at every Olympics since making its debut at Los Angeles 1932, apart from Montreal 1976. 

World Athletics had proposed the inclusion of the women's 50km event but it was rejected by the International Olympic Committee, leading to consultation between them and World Athletics on the mixed gender event. 

The requirement of each athlete to complete two legs in the new marathon race walk, will add an endurance component to the race, World Athletics claimed.

The team qualification pathway for this new event will be published shortly.

"We’re excited to have another mixed relay on the Olympic programme to showcase the skills of both our female and male athletes in one event," World Athletics chief executive Jon Ridgeon said. 

"This format is designed to be innovative, dynamic and unpredictable. 

"We believe it will be easily understood by fans, will feature exciting competition and, importantly, it will ensure full gender equality across the Olympic track and field programme for the first time."

The marathon race walk mixed relay will be held six days after the individual 20km race walking events are due to launch the Paris 2024 athletics programme on August 1.