Naval Academy quarterback Keenan Reynolds warms up before the start of a football game against Memphis in Tennessee. (Mark Humphrey/Associated Press)Defense Secretary Jim Mattis has rescinded a Defense Department policy that allowed some of the best athletes from the military’s service academies to avoid active-duty service after graduating in order to pursue professional sports, the Pentagon said Monday. The new policy will again require all athletes to serve at least two years on active duty if they attend a service academy. The policy will not apply to athletes who recently graduated, such as Keenan Reynolds of the Naval Academy. The Pentagon strictly adhered to its service requirements for athletes for years, but the practice began to change in 2005 with a Military Academy policy that allowed cadets with “unique talents and abilities” to pursue atypical ways to meet their service requirements.

Source: Washington Post May 01, 2017 22:41 UTC