It will take place to highlight the power of sport as a vehicle for peace, it is claimed, following a significant easing of tensions between North and South Korea in recent months that has seen the North's leader Kim Jong Un meet South Korean President Moon Jae-In more than once.

On top of that there was a historic moment in the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) World Championships in Halmstad, in Sweden last month, when the two Koreas refused to play against each other in the quarter-finals, instead forming a joint Korean team for the semi-final.

A joint Korean ice hockey team was also formed at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, a move which International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach claimed was, "a great step forward in the Olympic spirit and in the spirit of the Olympic Truce Resolution".

Commenting on tomorrow's competition, ITTF chief executive Steve Dainton said it is "great" table tennis can be used as a tool for peace. 

"Table tennis has a rich history in diplomacy, so we are happy that the IOC is using table tennis on Olympic Day to show the world how table tennis can be used as tool to promote peace," he said.

A table tennis competition between the United States and China was famously used to symbolise a thaw in relations between the two countries in the early 1970's. 

The event, known thereafter as "ping-pong diplomacy" saw the American team visit Beijing in April 1971, becoming the first American delegation to visit China since 1949 when Mao Zedong's Communist Party seized power. 

It is hoped this new event in Lausanne will help continue the current easing of relations in Asia, especially between North and South Korea. 

ITTF President Thomas Weikert, chief executive Steve Dainton and secretary general Raul Calin will all attend the event, as will the President of the four country's National Olympic Committees, who also due to hold talks with Bach.