Accused Of Mocking Christianity In Opening Ceremony, Paris Olympics Organisers Send Apology

Organisers of the Paris Olympics said Sunday they were "really sorry" for any offence caused by their daring and quirky opening ceremony but denied "any intention to show disrespect to any religious group." Some Catholic groups and French bishops have condemned what they saw as "scenes of derision and mockery of Christianity" in the parade on Friday choreographed by theatre director Thomas Jolly. Criticism has focused on a scene involving dancers, drag queens and a DJ in poses that recalled depictions of the Last Supper, the final meal Jesus is said to have taken with his apostles.

"Clearly there was never an intention to show disrespect to any religious group," Paris 2024 spokeswoman Anne Descamps told reporters on Sunday.

"If people have taken any offence, we are of course really, really sorry," she added.

Jolly also denied taking inspiration from the Last Supper in his nearly four-hour production which took place under driving rain along the River Seine.

The scene, intended to promote tolerance of different sexual and gender identities, also featured French actor Philippe Katerine who appeared almost naked and painted blue as Dionysus, the Greek god of wine and pleasure.

"The idea was to do a big pagan party linked to the gods of Olympus," Jolly told the BFM channel on Sunday.

"You'll never find in my work any desire to mock or denigrate anyone. I wanted a ceremony that brings people together, that reconciles, but also a ceremony that affirms our Republican values of liberty, equality and fraternity," he added.

In one of the other striking moments of the ceremony, a woman holding a bloodied severed head and intended to be executed French queen Marie-Antoinette appeared in a window of the Conciergerie, a building where