Lack of Progress in Youth Fitness Called Alarming

American schoolchildren are in no better shape than they were a decade ago, and in some cases are significantly weaker, a presidential council on physical fitness reported Thursday.

A survey of 18,857 public school pupils found a continuing “low level of performance” in key areas such as running, jumping, flexibility and strength, the President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports reported.

“Those statistics are alarming,” said George Allen, the council’s chairman and former coach of the Washington Redskins. “The conclusion to me is that America is in last place in physical fitness.”

Allen, who called some findings “appalling,” blamed cutbacks in physical education programs.

“That would be the key,” he said. “That would be the Super Bowl: putting physical education back in the schools.”

The survey last year of 6- to 17-year-old boys and girls at 187 schools was the largest of its kind in the United States. Among its findings:

--Forty percent of boys aged 6 to 12 and 70% of all the girls could not do more than one pull up.

--Half of the girls aged 6 to 17 and 30% of the boys aged 6 to 12 could not run a mile in less than 10 minutes.

--Forty-five percent of boys aged 6 to 14 and 55% of all the girls could not hold their chin over a raised bar for more than 10 seconds.

Overall, the children’s performances were little changed from 1965 and 1975 surveys.