Abstract
Introduction: between the final decades of the 19th century and the early decades of the20th, an obsession inhabited the world of gymnastics: the creation of national methods ofphysical education. In many cases, the creation of these national methods presentedaxiological, technical and above all scientific bases that were clearly distinguished from thoseof sport. Objective: to analyze the creation of a national method of physical education inFrance from the oppositions historically constructed between gymnastics and sport. Method:the historical sources of the research are the writings of French debaters of sport andgymnastics, as well as personalities in gymnastics who dedicated themselves to creating anddebating methods of physical education in France. The analyzes are based on a classificationsystem that distinguishes between a “right mystic” and a “left mystic” to define theoppositions built up over time between gymnastics and sport. Conclusion: while thedefense of sport was anchored in a “mystic of right” in France, the defense of gymnasticswas anchored in a “mystic of left”. The sport was almost always excluded or combated in theprocesses that led to the creation of the French national method of physical education.