GB/T 17498.2—2024: Strength Training Equipment Safety Requirements and Test Methods A Deep-Dive Interpretation of China’s New National Standard and Its Alignment with ISO 20957 Keywords:   Strength Training Equipment Standard, Fitness Equipment National Standard, ISO 20957 Alignment, China GB/T 17498, Strength Machine Safety Requirements, Fitness Equipment Testing Methods 1. Background: Upgrading to an Internationally Aligned Safety Framework The newly revised GB/T 17498.2—2024, officially titled Stationary Training Equipment – Part 2: Strength Training Equipment – Additional Specific Safety Requirements and Test Methods, represents a major step in China’s harmonization with the ISO 20957-2:2024 international framework. This standard defines specific safety and testing requirements for strength training machines, supplementing the general rules set in GB/T 17498.1 (General Safety Requirements and Test Methods). Compared with the previous 2008 version, the 2024 revision delivers a significant structural and technical upgrade: • Introduces 12+ new technical terms and definitions (e.g., guided equipment, drop stop, work arm); • Refines stability, load safety factors, and durability evaluation; • Differentiates product categories by usage environment (Home H-class, Studio S-class, Institutional I-class); • Adds tests for guide rails, limit stops, weight rods, and protective covers; • Enhances hand entrapment, impact, and static load tests; • Fully aligns China’s certification logic with ISO 20957 international procedures. 2. Scope and Application The standard applies to stationary indoor strength training equipment—machines providing resistance through: • Weight stacks, guide rails, elastic bands, hydraulics, pneumatics, magnetic resistance, or external weights. Typical equipment includes: • Multi-function gyms, Smith machines, squat racks, hack squat trainers, • Chest press, rowing, leg curl/extension machines, • Functional trainers with user-defined motion paths. The standard is used together with GB/T 17498.1, where Part 1 defines general safety and testing principles, and Part 2 supplements them with specific mechanical and operational safety requirements for strength machines. 3.