Office of the Press Secretary FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 26, 2019 Statement from the Press Secretary Regarding Professional Athletic Opportunities for Military Commissioning Program Graduates Today, President Donald J. Trump signed a Presidential Memorandum regarding a “Policy for Military Service Academy and Reserve Officers’ Training Corps Graduates Seeking to Participate in Professional Sports.”  The President has directed the Secretary of Defense to develop a policy that authorizes graduates of the Military Service Academies (Academies) and Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) programs to play professional sports consistent with their military service obligations. Highly talented cadets and midshipmen who receive the extraordinary benefits of an education from an Academy or through a ROTC program at taxpayer expense should be able to both take advantage of the short window of time during which playing professional sports is realistically possible, while also honoring the commitment they have made to our Armed Forces and our country.  This new policy will make that possible. Once implemented, the President’s policy will empower our cherished Academies to compete even better in sporting activities against other colleges and universities, benefitting student-athletes and the Armed Forces.  The President wants our military to be strong in all respects, even in athletics.