Mirna Fahmy- Diplomatic Inside

The summer 2024 Paris Olympics snarled into many riddles and objections related to the LGBTQ people and even its early preparations’ phases.

When mentioning the summer 2024 Paris Olympics, its opening would be the first brought-up topic to any research and discussion. Starring the LGBTQ people in the Olympics opening has accentuated on various social media platforms with mockery and objections.

Unveiling the opening performance, the first scene infuriated many audiences, especially the Christian communities across the world, because the scene resembled the famous painting of Leonardo da Vinci, the “Last Supper.” The performers were mainly LGBTQ activists, and some of them had their sexual parts nude.

Inappropriate to display such scenes to children as billions worldwide watch the opening, the Catholic Church of France stated on X that “Unfortunately, this ceremony contained scenes that mocked Christianity, which we deeply regret.”

“The church expresses its discontent towards what was performed at the Paris Olympics.” The Coptic Orthodox Church of Egypt expressed this on its official social media accounts. “The scene is against the respect of the basic universal ethical principles that the Olympics should adhere to.”

The conservatives posted many angry posts about what France is doing, noting that Emmanuel Macron, who is a leftist president of France, is the biggest fan of this community, and there are claims that his wife might be transgender.

“What a week! What Games? This is France!” Macron posted on his X account.

French people on X said that it is a shame to be French and to display such a performance. Some even apologised on behalf of the French people because the country, which was once enamoured for its stunning landscapes and progressive vision, has regrettably veered off course, leaving many disillusioned.

Marches of the Christians with candles were propelling Paris streets, demonstrating their anger in a civilised, peaceful way, and they won’t accept any more riddles to Christianity.

This is coinciding with the murder incidents that used to occur in France regularly whenever any individual or organisation mocked other religions, such as Islam. The most remarkable news of this sort that the country encountered multiple times is Charlie Hebdo magazine, which usually mocks any known figures, religions, and ideologies, and the French teacher Samuel, who drew some drawings offending the religion.

“Would they ever have dared mock Islam in a similar way?” Catholic Bishop Robert Barron condemns the blasphemous opening in a video on his X account. “Would they ever have dreamed of mocking in this gross public way a scene from the Quran?”

Alluding to the same concept, the famous British TV presenter Piers Morgan noted this on his X account.

“Insulting Jesus Christ or any of his brothers’ prophet is extremism and reckless,” the oldest Islamic educational institution in Egypt and the world, Al-Azhar, posted on X. “Al-Azhar warns of the danger of exploiting international events to normalise insults to religion and promote homosexuality and transgenderism.”

Claims that the Olympic “Last Supper” depicted scene isn’t supposed to be from this painting have been twirled through the comments. The scene should be based on “The Feast of the Gods,” painted by the Dutch artist Jan Van Bijlert between 1635 and 1640, illustrating The Greek Gods on Mount Olympus.

The actor, comedian, and theatre director, who has explored LGBTQ+ themes in his stage work, Thomas Jolly, told British Vogue that he wants to ensure his celebrations show that there “is room for everyone in Paris.” The opening ceremony will be a success only if “everyone feels represented in it.”

Jolly explained that his show isn’t inspired by the Last Supper. The centre of attraction Barbara Butch who calls herself a “love activist” didn’t attract any consent from any audience because of her size as most of the Olympics games don’t usually permit oversize athletes to compete in the sports. Most of them have to strictly fit in specified size ranges.

The dressed blue man who placed himself as food on the table of the scene is the French actor and singer Philippe Katerine. He apologised for what was wrongly perceived during the opening. According to a CNN interview, he said that he was raised as a Catholic Christian, and the show has nothing to do with blasphemy. “I was performing one of my songs called Shame, so it required appearing like this.” “ The song asks, “If we remained naked, would there be wars?”

Upon all these controversies, the administration of Paris 2024 apologised over the Last Supper Parody.

Comparisons of how previous Olympics openings have been shared all over showing how the countries that hosted the Olympics at that time presented its history in a creative way like Greece in 2004 or balletic dances like Russia in 2014. China’s Olympics in 2008 as well was a spotlight capture because it put on a drum show, a significant speck of its heritage.

In response to the opening, C Spire, a US Mississippi tech company, pulled its advertisements from the Olympics. Elon Musk, the CEO of X and the tech mogul of companies like SpaceX and Tesla, forged his way to social media, especially X, to make his stance clear, stating, “The Olympics have become a woke event now. I will stop all donations and any form of support. This isn’t what sports should be about.”

Before the event sets off, France’s police have cleaned the main streets of Paris from the homeless and the slums that were mainly occupied by immigrants.

The beginning of the Paris Olympics was agitated. There were subjugating trains in many cities of the country, especially the lines that would serve the Olympic destinations. Initial police investigations were looking at individuals connected with extreme left-wing groups. However, French Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin has also raised the possibility of foreign involvement, such as the immigrants. After the kickoff of the enormous event, no more incidents were reported.

The once-pristine streets of Paris are now littered with overflowing bins and piles of refuse, welcoming many rats to run around. A second real-live action tale of Ratatouille!

About 6 million huge mice emerged from their underground burrows, according to the English newspaper “Daily Star.” The size of the mice is huge, equivalent to the size of a cat, and it even attacked a journalist.

The newspaper explained that the danger extends to pollution and bacteria found in rat waste, which may cause many diseases. The organising committee is trying to contain the crisis by conducting cleaning operations, as the Deputy Mayor of Paris, Anne-Claire Box, announced that she does not want to eliminate the rats but rather keep them underground because they are “useful in maintaining the sewers.”

In reference to many sources, the Seine River in Paris is currently polluted, though there were significant efforts and investments—approximately €1.4 billion (about $1.5 billion) aimed at cleaning the river. In the last days there were huge downpours forcing the sewage water to be poured in the river. This has made the swimmers stomachs retch and throw up.

Many athletes complained about the quality of food and accommodation. Italian swimmer Thomas Ceccon was seen in the park sleeping. He said he could not sleep because the rooms’ air conditioning wasn’t working and he wanted fresh air.

Businesses are lagging instead of looming in the Paris Olympics. Air France and Delta Air lines announced on July 1st that traffic to and from Paris was falling behind other major European cities, signalling concerns. Hotels as well didn’t receive an anticipated number of tourists, instigating them to exert effort in advertisement to pull in many bookings.