President Donald Trump signed an executive order July 31 reviving the Presidential Fitness Test and reinstating the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition, as part of his push to “make America healthy again.” 

“This is a wonderful tradition,” Trump announced at the White House signing ceremony, “and we’re bringing it back.”

Harrison Butker, a Catholic football star who plays for the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs, stood alongside Trump for the announcement, joined by several other prominent athletes who will serve on the council.

Butker praised the initiative as essential for developing well-rounded citizens. 

“Just excited to do my part to help make America healthy again, to help our youth be healthy and thrive and grow up and be great citizens of this country and be great family members and contribute to this great country,” Butker said. “And I think you have to be strong in mind, in body, and soul.” 

The White House said the council will relaunch school-based programs to reward excellence in physical education and bring back the Presidential Fitness Award. It will also work with athletes, coaches, and schools to expand fitness opportunities and address issues in college sports, including efforts to protect women’s sports. 

The administration aims to combat soaring rates of obesity, chronic illness, inactivity, and poor nutrition through “a time-tested approach celebrating the exceptionalism of America’s sports and fitness traditions,” according to a White House statement.

Harvard Health Publishing reported that the fitness test was introduced in 1956 but phased out during the Obama administration. It includes a one-mile run, pullups, situps, shuttle runs, and sit-and-reach flexibility tests.