On July 31, 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order reinstating the Presidential Fitness Test in U.S. public schools, reviving a program from the 1950s to 2013 that assessed students’ physical fitness through exercises like running, pull-ups, and sit-ups, with top performers earning a Presidential Fitness Award.
🚨 BREAKING: President Trump officially signs the executive order to bring back the Presidential Fitness Test in public schools.
pic.twitter.com/KNOVjFCOEN— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) July 31, 2025
The order expands the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition, chaired by golfer Bryson DeChambeau and including figures like Harrison Butker and Lawrence Taylor, to develop school programs and new award criteria under Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s “Make America Healthy Again” initiative.
Aimed at addressing childhood obesity and promoting active lifestyles ahead of U.S.-hosted global sports events, the move has sparked debate, with supporters praising its focus on accountability and critics arguing it may discourage less athletic students due to rigid standards.