La Scuola universitaria di educazione fisica di Bologna: Un esempio delle ambizioni, dei conflitti e delle contraddizioni del fascismo

Abstract

As part of the social revolution desired by fascism, physical activity played
a central role. This article aims to examine the case of the School of Physical Education
at the University of Bologna, conceived in the context of the reform of physical education
teacher training linked to the foundation of the Ente Nazionale di Educazione Fisica
(ENEF) in 1923. Directed by Donato Ottolenghi (1874-1942), this School was however
very short-lived between 1925 and 1927 and had to adapt its academic profile several
times. Archival material preserved in Bologna and Rome and printed sources make it
possible to clarify the history of this institution that was initially desired by fascism but
was established without a future. The ambition of the Bolognese hierarchs was in fact
overtaken by other national concerns of the regime, revealing conflicts and contradictions
in the construction of a general scheme for physical education and sport in Fascist Italy.