Dem Mazie Hirono admits ‘physiological differences’ prevent many women from doing pull-ups for FBI fitness test

Patel was speaking answering questions during a Senate Judiciary hearing, when Hirons asked, "You are now requiring applicants to be able to do a certain kind of pull ups, which a lot of women cannot because of physiological differences. Are you requiring these kinds of pull ups?"

"We are requiring a physical program at BFTC at Quantico, because FBI agents carrying guns in the field have to chase down bad guys and do really hard work. The physical fitness standards of those agents—" Patel said, then was interrupted by Hirono, who asked again if the FBI was requiring that people be able to do pull-ups.

"We are requiring everybody to pass the 1811 standards of the FTC. If you want to chase down a bad guy and put him in handcuffs you better be able to do a pull-up," Patel added.

Hirono then called the requirement for female FBI agents to do a pull-up "harsh."

"Doing one pull up is not harsh, and there are always medical exemptions to that," Patel fired back. According to the FBI, the minimum score for pull-ups for Tactical Recruiting Program (TRP) candidates in pull-ups is one. To score a one, a man must be able to do 2-3 pull-ups and a woman must do at least 1 pull-up.

Hirono said that the test required "certain kinds" of pull-ups, however, the FBI describes a normal strict pull-up on its page for their fitness test requirements, saying, "The candidate hangs from a horizontal bar. Hands need to be wider than the shoulders—but no more than two hand-widths outside the shoulders—with palms turned away from the face and arms fully extended.

"The candidate flexes his or her arms and pulls the body upward until the chin is higher than the bar. There can be no swinging or jerking of the body or use of the legs in an effort to propel the body upward. The candidate then lowers their body back to the hanging position with arms fully extended. This is a continuous-motion exercise."