In the article, based on the analysis of some original archival documents, first discovered in their original presentation, an attempt is made to present objective information about the emergence of professional education in the field of human motor activity from the standpoint of theoretical-retrospective and historicalcontextual approaches. Moreover, the authors not only comprehend the conceptual apparatus used in the second half of the XIX century, and consider the prerequisites that influenced the development of education in the field under study, but also justify the need to correlate its characteristics with current conditions.