PARIS (Reuters) – Paris 2024 organisers apologised on Sunday to Catholics and other Christian groups angered by a kitsch tableau in the Olympic Games opening ceremony that parodied Leonardo Da Vinci’s famous ‘The Last Supper’ painting.
The segment, which recreated the biblical scene of Jesus Christ and his apostles sharing a last meal before crucifixion, featured drag queens, a transgender model and a naked singer made up as the Greek god of wine Dionysus, and drew dismay from the Catholic Church.
“Clearly there was never an intention to show disrespect to any religious group. (The opening ceremony) tried to celebrate community tolerance,” Paris 2024 spokesperson Anne Descamps told a press conference.
“We believe this ambition was achieved. If people have taken any offence we are really sorry.”
(Reporting by Karolos Grohmann and Julien Pretot; Editing by Richard Lough and Ken Ferris)
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