Army bulks up as anti-fatty rule altered

LONDON - The Army is to open its ranks to a generation of super-heavy soldiers after lifting a ban on recruits over a certain weight.

The Ministry of Defence has decided weight limits designed to screen out overweight and unfit applicants are also excluding some of the strongest candidates.

Previously men with a body mass index (BMI) of more than 28 have been barred from joining the military, meaning that world-class rugby players such as England's Lawrence Dallaglio and New Zealand's Jonah Lomu would have been rejected.

But by extending the threshold to 32 - two points above the World Health Organisation's definition of obesity - a six-foot (1.83m) recruit could weigh almost 17 stone (108kg) and still be admitted.

The limit for women remains at 28.

"It's reflecting the fact that the BMI is not a perfect science," a ministry spokesman said.

One of the reasons for the rule change was that it was excluding many Fijians who are much bigger, on average, than British recruits.

BMI is calculated by squaring your height in metres and then dividing your weight in kilograms by the result.

- INDEPENDENT