Around 600 second and third-year middle school students will not take part in Sport in Fiera 2026. The decision, made by the Teaching Staff Council (Collegio docenti) of the Middle School, has drawn a response from Christian Forcellini, president of the San Marino National Olympic Committee (CONS), after the matter was also discussed in the National Sports Commission.
Forcellini describes the decision as one received with «regret and bitterness», explaining that CONS had sought dialogue right up to the last moment in an attempt to find a solution. He is not challenging the school’s autonomy, he clarifies, but takes a firm stance on the consequences: «Leaving around 600 young people out of Sport in Fiera represents, in my view, a defeat for the entire system».
The central issue concerns the very role of the event. For Forcellini, «Sport in Fiera is school», because it means education, socialization, respect for rules and the chance to discover new disciplines, as well as serving as a tool against sedentary habits and isolation.
Hence his criticism: «If in 2026 sport is still seen as time taken away from studying, then we have a problem and we are taking a step backwards».
First-year middle school students will take part in the event, while second and third-year students will remain at school. This situation leads Forcellini to imagine the question the excluded students might ask: «Why not us?».
The CONS president now hopes that this case will open up a broader reflection and help rebuild dialogue. «School and sport must not be opposing worlds, but allies in the growth of new generations», Forcellini concludes, describing what happened as a great missed opportunity.
