‘Indecent’: President Macron’s steamy embrace and kiss with Sports Minister at Olympics raises eyebrows

The internet is buzzing about awkward photos showing French President Emmanuel Macron sharing a touchy-feely moment with his Sports Minister during the Olympics.

The internet is buzzing about awkward photos showing French President Emmanuel Macron sharing a touchy-feely moment with his Sports Minister during the 2024 Paris Olympics opening ceremony – with some comparing the affectionate display to a lover’s embrace.

The photo shows Mr Macron, 46, tightly gripping the arm of Amélie Oudéa-Castéra, 46, a former professional tennis player who is the country’s Sports Minister and, as one X user pointed out, his subordinate.

Emmanuel Macron greets Amelie Oudea-Castera during the Opening Ceremony. Picture: Fabrice Coffrini/AFP

The President’s embrace with his Sports Minister raised eyebrows. Picture: Agence KMSP/KMSP/KMSP via AFP

Ms Oudéa-Castéra in turn clutches Mr Macron’s bicep with one hand, the other wrapped affectionately around his neck while planting a kiss on the French leader’s neck.

Exacerbating the photo’s cringe factor is the positioning of Prime Minister Gabriel Attal, who appears to be conspicuously averting his gaze from the display.

“Gabriel Attal, he pretends to look elsewhere! He doesn’t know where to stand!” one user wrote.

“It’s my lover that I’m kissing like this. Embarrassing,” another wrote.

“I find this photo indecent, it’s not worthy of a president and a minister,” a disapproving poster seethed.

Other officials nearby conspicuously averted their eyes. Picture: Odd Andersen/AFP

IOC president Thomas Bach watches on. Picture: Joel Marklund/Bildbyran/Sipa USA/AAP

The photo was brought to peoples’ attention by French magazine Madame Figaro, which called the kiss “strange” and claimed Ms Oudéa-Castéra had a penchant for drawing attention to herself.

Ms Oudéa-Castéra, or AOC as she’s known in France, believe it or not, has been front-and-centre as the first Olympics in France in 100 years came to life.

Baignade dans la Seine: les images de la ministre des Sports plongeant dans le fleuve à Paris à 13 jours des JO pic.twitter.com/xzZu3K13so

— BFMTV (@BFMTV) July 13, 2024

Earlier this month, she took a dip in the Seine River to allay fears of unsafe E. coli levels in the famous waterway, where several events are scheduled to take place during the games.

A pre-race triathlon event in it was cancelled on Sunday over water quality concerns.

Mr Macron named Ms Oudéa-Castéra as France’s Education Minister in January, but removed her from the role after less than a month following revelations that she had her children educated at posh private schools and made disparaging remarks about public schools where she lived.

Not every commenter on X was scandalised by the celebratory hug. One user defended it as “a slightly warm congratulation to celebrate the moment.”

This article originally appeared on NY Post and was reproduced with permission