Thirty international experts on physical fitness will meet here next week to put the final touches to a universal physical fitness test that will be used to make scientific comparisons of the physical fitness of various nationalities and other groups.
The convening in Israel of the sixth annual meeting of the International Committee for the Standardization of Physical Fitness Rests was a tribute to the Wingate Institute, Israel’s national institute for physical education and sports, which is marking its 13th anniversary. The institute is named for the late Gen. Orde Wingate, the British Army officers who trained and led Haganah units in the 1930s and during the early part of World War II.
The Institute will play host to the group representing 20 countries. According to Dr. Uriel Simri, an Israeli authority on the scientific aspects of physical training, the lack of a universal physical fitness test until now has made valid comparative studies impossible because a variety of scales are used in different countries. The Wingate Institute near Nathanya trains physical education teachers, physiotherapists and coaches for nine sports. It also does research, promotes sports medicine and puts out professional publications.
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