"Isn't this supposed to be a piece of cake?"

There has been ongoing controversy in some circles that the police officer (patrol officer) recruitment fitness test, which will switch to a unified selection process for men and women starting next year, is excessively easy. Two reporters from The Asia Business Daily, one male and one female, personally took on the revamped fitness test to find out.

On the 22nd, we visited the circular fitness test experience booth at the 7th International Police Industry Expo held at Songdo Convensia in Yeonsu-gu, Incheon. The circular fitness test consists of five courses: obstacle running, pole hurdle jumping, pushing and pulling, rescue, and trigger pulling. Both men and women must wear a 4.2kg vest and complete all five courses within 4 minutes and 40 seconds to pass.

After receiving an explanation of the test courses from a police officer, I put on the 4.2kg vest and entered the test area.

When I pressed the start button, the countdown began, and I launched into the first course: obstacle running. This event requires participants to complete six laps of a course that includes jumping over a 0.6m hurdle, clearing a 1.5m mat and barrier, and going up and down a five-step staircase. A lot of energy was spent on the 1.5m mat and barrier, and I wasted time retracing my steps after getting confused about the course order. The real challenge hit on the fourth lap. I was out of breath and my legs started to give out. On the final lap, I barely managed to clear the hurdle and sprinted with all my might, finishing the course in 2 minutes and 10 seconds.

The next course, pole hurdle jumping, involves getting up from a prone position, jumping over a 0.9m pole, then lying back down and repeating the sequence three times. Repeating the movements left me gasping for air, and by the third hurdle, I was completely exhausted. I immediately moved on to the pushing and pulling event. Here, I had to push and then pull a 32kg device in a semicircle, repeating each movement three times. I grabbed the handles with confidence, but warning sounds kept going off, forcing me to restart the movement from the beginning.

The most difficult event was "rescue." I had to drag a mannequin weighing 72kg-the size of a well-built adult male-about 11 meters using both hands. After about 5 meters, my thighs and forearms gave out, and I had to stop for three seconds.

After barely finishing the course, I faced the final challenge: trigger pulling. I had to insert the muzzle of a replica rifle into a circular frame on a structure ahead and pull the trigger 16 times with each hand to pass. After intense aerobic and anaerobic exercise, even moving a finger was a struggle. I had to focus all my attention on my fingertips just to pull the trigger. My final time was 4 minutes and 55 seconds-15 seconds slower than the passing time of 4 minutes and 40 seconds, earning a "normal" grade.

On the 22nd, at the circular fitness test experience booth held at Songdo Convensia in Incheon, reporter Eunseo Lee is jumping over a 0.6m hurdle. Photo by Seonjin Byun

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Next, reporter Lee Eunseo, the female participant, donned the 4.2kg vest and entered the first course. For reporter Lee, who rarely exercises, the greatest challenge was the 1.5m barrier, which matched her height. Standing in front of the wall, she felt both physically and psychologically pressured. As she repeated the obstacle course, her body became less and less responsive. By the sixth lap, her legs were giving out, and warning sounds went off every time she crossed the mat. She also struggled to remember the order and follow the course. By the time she finished, more than three minutes had already passed.

The difficulties continued with the second course, pole hurdle jumping. As she tried to clear the hurdle, the supervisor warned, "Your thighs or hips must not touch; you must jump over with both feet." Each time she crawled and lay down on either side of the barrier, her mind grew hazier.

The next event, pushing and pulling the equipment, was even tougher. She tried to pull the 32kg device, but lacked the strength to move it properly. As her balance faltered, the handle slipped and warning sounds continued. When the police officer told her to "start over," she was left in despair.

On the 22nd, at the circulatory fitness test experience booth held at Songdo Convensia in Incheon, reporter Lee is pulling a 72kg mannequin. Photo by Byun Seonjin

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The final challenge was trigger pulling. But by then, her whole body was drained, and her fingers would not respond. Her final time was 6 minutes and 40 seconds-two minutes slower than the passing time of 4 minutes and 40 seconds.

Looking at the records of 10 other participants, except for two professional fitness instructors from police academies, none were able to achieve a passing time. A National Police Agency official explained, "Even current police officers would find it difficult to guarantee passing the revamped test if they had to retake it. The new fitness test was developed over four years of research and pilot programs to verify the physical abilities required in real-life situations, rather than just measuring basic strength. Circular fitness tests are now the trend internationally."