President Donald Trump signed a proclamation on Tuesday restoring the Presidential Fitness Test Award for schoolchildren, reviving a competitive program phased out more than a decade ago.

The signing took place in the Oval Office at the White House, where Trump was joined by young athletes, professional sports figures, including golfers Gary Player and Bryson DeChambeau, Baltimore Ravens cornerback Amani Oruwariye, and MLB pitcher Noah Syndergaard. Cabinet members in attendance included Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Education Secretary Linda McMahon, War Secretary Pete Hegseth, and Housing Secretary Scott Turner.

Trump described the original test as a "wonderful tradition" discontinued by the Obama administration, which replaced it with the Presidential Youth Fitness Program focused on health metrics rather than performance standards. "We had the Obama administration, which phased out this wonderful tradition of physical fitness. Thank you, Barack, very much. Great job. But we’re bringing it back," Trump said.

The Presidential Fitness Test, first introduced in the 1960s under President John F. Kennedy, includes exercises such as a one-mile run, sit-ups for one minute, pull-ups or push-ups to failure, and a flexibility test. Students who meet benchmarks receive the award.

This action builds on an executive order Trump signed on July 31, 2025, which revitalized the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness, and Nutrition and reestablished the test itself as the primary assessment for a Presidential Fitness Award, to be administered by the Department of Health and Human Services with Education Department support. That order directed the council to develop school-based programs rewarding physical education excellence and to promote youth sports participation amid rising obesity rates.

Kennedy, whose uncle launched aspects of the original program, highlighted national health concerns. "We’re now the sickest nation in the world. We’ve gone from 5% of our kids being obese to 20%, 70% of adults are obese or overweight, and 77% of our children cannot qualify for military service," he said. He added that the program teaches competition: "We need to be competitive with each other. We need to teach people how to win and how to lose."

DeChambeau, who took the test as a child, said, "We want to make sure our kids have the best opportunity to succeed in life, and not only from their mind, but their health and their wellbeing."

Trump joked about his own routine: "I work out so hard on a personal basis. I work out so much, like about one minute a day, max, if I’m lucky." He emphasized, "Physical fitness is everything."

The proclamation coincides with National Physical Fitness and Sports Month, which Trump also declared on Tuesday. It reaffirms commitments to youth fitness, references the 70th anniversary of the council, and calls for expanded athletic opportunities ahead of major events like the 2026 FIFA World Cup and Olympics.

Following the signing, participants moved to the South Lawn for fitness demonstrations, including pull-ups, soccer, and races with the Washington Nationals’ Racing Presidents mascots.