A growing number of Americans have criticized the opening ceremony of the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, including sports celebrity Pat McAfee and former President Donald Trump.
McAfee, a former professional football player turned sports analyst and media personality, said on his show on ESPN Monday that he understood how people viewed aspects of Friday’s ceremony as disrespectful.
As he spoke, images were shared on his show of the controversial performance that many viewers interpreted as a mock recreation of Leonardo da Vinci’s “The Last Supper.”
McAfee added he didn’t know what these expressions had to do with the Olympics, saying the focus should be on sports and athletes.
“It was a form of artistic expression that was paying tribute. Whatever,” Mr. McAfee said. “We just want it to revolve around sports. And we can’t have the opening ceremony be a reason why people won’t watch these athletes who have sacrificed everything about their lives to be great at something and only get to experience and celebrate once every four years. … You can’t have the opening ceremony starting a war, starting a protest.”
Trump also shared his reaction on Monday about the controversial performance.
“I thought that the opening ceremony was a disgrace, actually,” Trump said during an interview with Fox News, adding that such a portrayal would not happen if he was elected to office and could influence Olympic organizers.
“We won’t be having a Last Supper, as portrayed the way they portrayed it the other night,” the former president said. “I’m very open-minded, but I thought what they did was a disgrace.”
President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have not made any public comments about the opening ceremony.
Organizers of the Paris games apologized to viewers who were offended during the tableau, which they say was meant to depict an ancient festival in honor of the Greek god Dionysus. The official account for the Olympics stated in a post on X that the interpretation makes people aware of the “absurdity of violence” between humans.
“My wish isn’t to be subversive, nor to mock or to shock,” Thomas Jolly, the ceremony’s artistic director, stated during a press conference. “Most of all, I wanted to send a message of love, a message of inclusion and not at all to divide.”
While many viewers supported the Olympics for celebrating inclusivity, many Christians worldwide felt offended by the perceived use of religious imagery.
U.S. Catholic Bishop Robert Barron has taken to social media several times since the opening ceremony, recently urging Christians not to be “sheepish,” but to “resist” and keep raising their voices.
The French Bishops Conference also acknowledged the ceremony offered a “marvelous display of beauty and joy,” but also said it “included scenes of mockery and derision of Christianity,” according to a statement.
It also noted that the Olympic Games are a celebration that should go beyond the ideologies of a few artists.
Other notable figures who have condemned the opening ceremony range from lawmakers to high-profile figures, including House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker, and Elon Musk.