Roger Bannister (left) leads home John Landy in the mile at the 1954 Vancouver British Empire and Commonwealth Games. (AP Photo )
In short:
The 2026 Glasgow Commonwealth Games will include the mile event as part of the athletics program.
The mile was last contested at the 1966 Games in Kingston.
What's next?
Glasgow will host the Commonwealth Games in July and August next year.
World Athletics president Sebastian Coe has welcomed the return of the mile event in the athletics program for the streamlined 2026 Glasgow Commonwealth Games.
The mile was last contested at the 1966 Games in Kingston before being replaced by the 1,500 metres.
The event enjoyed a rich history at the British Empire/Commonwealth Games and is best remembered for the epic battle between Roger Bannister and John Landy in Vancouver in 1954.
It was the first mile race in history to feature two runners dipping under four minutes, as England's Bannister (3:58.8) led home Australian Landy (3:59.6) in thrilling fashion.
Watched by 35,000 people, it took place just three months after Bannister became the first man to record a sub-four-minute mile at Oxford's Iffley Road.
Landy had lowered the mark to 3:58.0, setting up one of the all-time great sporting duels in Vancouver.
Bannister's duel with Landy in Vancouver made worldwide headlines. (AP Photo)
Two-time Olympic gold medallist Coe, a former mile world-record holder, was excited by the addition of the event to the Glasgow program.
"The mile is the quintessential Commonwealth athletics event whose return to the Games in Glasgow 2026 I very much welcome," Coe said in a statement.
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"From 1930 through to 1966, the mile was the blue-riband event of each Games and the magic of the mile continues to resonate with sports fans.
"A ticket to watch the final will be one of the must-have seats in Glasgow."
Commonwealth Games organisers announced more than 200 golds will be up for grabs across 10 sports to be staged at four venues between July 23 to August 2 next year.
High-profile team sports such as hockey, rugby sevens and cricket were axed, but there will be 56 gold medals on offer in swimming events.
Australia won 25 golds from 52 events in Birmingham 2022 and can be expected to improve on that haul after its Paris Olympic heroics.
Australia dominated the swimming program at the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games. (Getty Images: Shaun Botterill)
There will also be a record 47 medal events in six sports in a fully integrated Para sport program.
Glasgow is putting on a confident face, having rescued an event which looked endangered when Victoria organisers pulled the plug, citing spiralling costs.
Victoria then paid $380 million in compensation to the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF), of which $200 million has been directed to Scotland, who also hosted the event in Glasgow in 2014.
That figure is being topped up by $4.5 million from Commonwealth Games Australia (CGA) to cover security.
AAP/ABC
