Soccer tests aimed at boosting students' fitness

The city plans to give soccer tests to primary and middle schools students every year in an effort to improve their physical fitness, a local education official told the Beijing News.

The plan has been reported to education authorities, who are expected to approve the tests this year, said Ma Ling, director of the PE education institute with Beijing Academy of Educational Sciences. Under current rules, primary and middle school students have to pass tests in running and the standing long jump every year.