The Marysville School District is accepting registrations for its annual sports physical beginning Aug. 1.

This physical exam puts participants through extensive testing, going above and beyond the usual physical provided at an athlete’s doctor’s office.

“The WIAA backed off on the every-year physical,” said Marysville district athletic director Greg Erickson. “If you’re going to do it every two years, it would really behoove you to do a very thorough physical and this one fits that bill.”

Athletes are examined in a variety of areas by local specialists with stations monitoring for lung capacity, vascular fitness and chemical discrepancies. Doctors pick up on occasional exercise-induced asthma among the tested or other physical conditions that cannot be discerned in a usual exam.

“This physical is good because it is definitely geared for the athlete and tends to be much more thorough, especially in the area of orthopedics,” Erickson said, adding that he particularly recommends parents register their athletic-minded children in seventh grade so that they only need two more exams throughout their high school careers. The physical is timed at the beginning of the school year so that students are cleared to play sports throughout the year. Athletes whose physicals will expire in the middle of a sports season will not be allowed to play that season or any afterward until a new exam is on file.

Participating doctors donate their time so that proceeds from the sports physical can go to a scholar-athlete fund, benefitting a boy and girl athlete graduating from Marysville-Pilchuck High. The physical is open only to students, but from any area school district.

Registration costs $40 and appointments run about a half an hour. The physical will be held at M-P Aug. 19 with appointments starting from 4 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. To register, call the Marysville School District at 360-653-7058.