Army makes combat arms fitness test sex-neutral, drops ball throw

The Army has reconfigured its fitness test, dropping the ball throw, making the test sex-neutral for combat arms and raising the minimum required score for 21 combat-focused jobs.

The exact scoring won’t be published until early May, officials said. Meanwhile, soldiers will now perform the deadlift, pushups, sprint-drag-carry, plank and two-mile run for the renamed Army Fitness Test, which, starting in June, will drop the former designation as the Army Combat Fitness Test when it becomes the service’s fitness test of record.

For the rest of the 200-plus Army jobs not on the combat list, soldiers must score a minimum of 300 points and at least 60 points in each category to pass.

Combat arms soldiers must score 350, also with a minimum of 60 points in each event, though these soldiers will need more points in some events to reach the 350 threshold.

Soldiers in the 21 combat arms jobs who do not pass on first or subsequent authorized attempts will be reviewed for job reclassification, officials said.

Sgt. Maj. Christopher Mullinax, the enlisted leader for the Army’s G-3/5/7 office, and Command Sgt. Maj. Joann Naumann, senior enlisted for Army Special Operations Command, told reporters on Tuesday that the service dropped the “combat” designator for the test’s title because it was redundant.

The purpose of all Army training is to prepare for combat, Mullinax said.

Following a detailed review of each of the events, researchers with the RAND Corporation noted the steep technique learning curve of the 10-pound medicine ball throw as not benefiting the intent of the test, which is to build explosive power, Mullinax said.

With the removal of the ball throw, the maximum score possible drops from 600 points to 500 points under the new configuration.

Male and female soldiers serving in one of the 21 combat arms jobs listed by the Army must pass each event under the 350-point standard for a successful test, regardless of gender.

The tests are likely to remain “age-normed,” which means that scoring is adjusted for the age of the soldier, officials said. Final scoring details won’t be released until May.

Army officials listed the following jobs that must meet the 350-point minimum standard:

• 11A Infantry Officer
• 11B Infantryman
• 11C Indirect Fire Infantryman (Mortarman)
• 11Z Infantry Senior Sergeant
• 12A Engineer
• 12B Combat Engineer
• 13A Field Artillery Officer
• 13F Fire Support Specialist
• 18A-Z Special Forces officer, Weapons Sergeant, Engineer Sergeant, Medical Sergeant, Communications Sergeant, Intelligence Sergeant and Senior Sergeant
• 180A Special Forces Warrant Officer
• 19A Armor Officer
• 19C Bradley Crew Member
• 19D Cavalry Scout
• 19K M1 Armor Crewman
• 19Z Armor Senior Sergeant

Discussing the change, Naumann shared her experience in passing assessment and selection for special operations in the early 2000s and said that achieving that standard helped her maintain credibility with the force.

“I see this as a positive for women in combat roles because it’s the same standard,” Naumann said.

Implementation guidance is scheduled to publish in May. The test will become the official test of record in June.

New scoring standards for the combat arms jobs will take effect in January 2026. The scoring standard for combat jobs will become the standard for the Guard and Reserve in June 2026, according to Army officials.