Marine Corps report shows 93% of female Marines pass combat fitness tests

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in August 2023 that women in combat should meet the same physical standards as men, and a year later the Marine Corps released data showing most women in combat‑type billets are doing just that. The report, released on Tuesday, says that 93 percent of female Marines in infantry, artillery and reconnaissance units passed the newly toughened fitness test, a benchmark that applies to all service members regardless of gender. The figures come from the Marine Corps’ annual readiness review and cover the fiscal year that ended in March.

The numbers matter because the Marine Corps has been at the center of the debate over gender integration since the 2015 repeal of the combat exclusion policy. After the ban was lifted, critics argued that women would need separate standards or risk failing the demanding Physical Fitness Test (PFT) and Combat Fitness Test (CFT). In 2022 the service introduced a “toughened” version of the tests, adding a 500‑meter sprint, a 350‑meter run and a 30‑meter combat crawl, to ensure the standards reflected the rigors of modern combat. Earlier reports showed women lagging behind men, fueling political and media scrutiny. The new data suggests the gap has narrowed dramatically.

The Marine Corps said 1,825 women were evaluated under the new regime, with 1,698 meeting or exceeding the required scores. By comparison, 88 percent of male Marines in the same occupational fields passed. Lieutenant Colonel Sarah Miller, a combat engineer who led the data analysis, said the results “demonstrate that the standards are fair and that women can perform at the same level as their male peers when given the same training.” Female veterans’ groups welcomed the findings, while some lawmakers who have pushed for separate standards expressed disappointment, arguing the tests still disadvantage women in certain metrics.

The service plans to keep the unified standards and will monitor retention and injury rates among women in combat roles over the next two years. If the trends hold, the Marine Corps could use the data to argue against calls for gender‑specific fitness criteria across the Department of Defense. The results also give the Pentagon a concrete example as it reviews broader policies on gender integration and may shape future recruitment and training approaches for all branches.