Trump revives Presidential Fitness Test for schoolchildren

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Thursday reestablished the Presidential Fitness Test for American schoolchildren, a program created in 1966 to help interest young people in following healthy, active lifestyles. Children had to run and perform situps, pullups or pushups and a sit-and-reach test, but the program changed in 2012 during the Obama administration to focus more on individual health than athletic feats."This is an important step in our mission to make America healthy again," Trump said from the Roosevelt Room of the White House.In a late afternoon ceremony, Trump signed an order reestablishing the President's Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition, as well as the fitness test, to be administered by his health secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The council also will develop criteria for a Presidential Fitness Award.In 2012, the assessment evolved into the Youth Fitness Program, which the government said "moved away from recognizing athletic performance to providing a barometer on student's health." Then-first lady Michelle Obama also promoted her "Let's Move" initiative focused on reducing childhood obesity through diet and exercise.Reinvigorating the sports council and the fitness test fits with Trump's focus on athletics.The Republican president played baseball in high school and plays golf almost every weekend. Much of the domestic travel he has done this year that is not related to weekend golf games at his clubs in Florida, New Jersey and Virginia was built around attending sporting events, including the Super Bowl, Daytona 500 and UFC matches.The announcement Thursday comes as Trump readies the United States to host the 2025 Ryder Cup, 2026 FIFA World Cup games and the 2028 Summer Olympics.The Youth Fitness Test, according to a Health and Human Services Department website last updated in 2023 but still online Thursday, "minimizes comparisons between children and instead supports students as they pursue personal fitness goals for lifelong health."