The course for the marathon and race walking at the Paris Olympics draws inspiration from the famed Women's March of 1789, when nearly 7,000 Parisian women marched through Paris Versailles to bring King Louis XVI back to Paris, where he soon after ratified the Universal Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizens.

The marathon course tracks this route, starting at the Hôtel de Ville and ending on the Esplanade des Invalides. Along the way, the scenic route allows runners to traverse through monuments of Paris, including the Louvre Pyramid, Grand Palais, Château de Versailles and the Eiffel Tower.

The route will prove challenging to marathoners: It includes a 436m (1430 feet) climb, a 438m (1437 feet) descent and a maximum gradient of 13.5%.

For the first time in Olympic history, members of the public can run the same course as the Olympic marathon on the same day: Aug. 10. A marathon-distance run and a 10km run will take place, featuring over 20,024 participants, just hours after the men's Olympic marathon.

Yes, there are three race walking events at the Paris Olympics, including a new event.

The marathon race walk mixed relay will make its Olympic debut, replacing the 50km individual discipline.

Twenty-five teams will compete in the race, each made up of one male and one female athlete. Combined, the pair will complete the marathon distance in four stages of roughly 10km each, alternating in the race (man, woman, man, woman).

The men's and women's 20km walks will each return for the Paris Games.

The race walk courses will take place on the same course as the marathon, covering a loop at the shorter distances of 20km. As in the marathon, athletes will run by the Eiffel Tower.

The official Olympic marathon distance is 42.195km (26.219mi).