Topics: News, Olympics, Politics, Sport, Emmanuel Macron
French president Emmanuel Macron has been photographed 'awkwardly' embracing his sports minister and subordinate during the opening ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics.
The photos show Macron, 46, and sports minister Amélie Oudéa-Castéra, also 46, holding onto each other as Oudéa-Castéra kisses Macron's cheek.
Oudéa-Castéra has her hands placed on Macron's neck and arm, with the president seemingly gripping onto her arm in return.
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In one of the photos, Prime Minister Gabriel Attal is pictured and appears to be looking away from the embrace.
It's widely regarded that French people are well known for being passionate - but these photos have shocked even the most liberal of minds.
One person wrote: "Macron's got some 'splainin to do. I mean, who doesn't love a good hug and kiss?
"But maybe not in public, especially when it comes to someone as important as the sports minister. It just looks awkward."
“I find this photo indecent, it’s not worthy of a president and a minister", another wrote.
A third added: "I feel like they might want to close the door," while a fourth called it 'embarrassing'.
A fifth said: "Attal doesn’t know where to look."
However, others were quick to defend the hug as one person said it was 'a slightly warm congratulation to celebrate the moment', while someone else said they 'didn't see the harm in it'.
Meanwhile, some pointed out other photos where Oudéa-Castéra had greeted the athletes in a similar fashion, The Telegraph reports.
Macron is married to Brigitte Macron, 71, who he met when he was her student at a private school in France. Oudéa-Castéra is also married.
The sports minister has been at the centre of the Olympic fanfare even before the opening ceremony that took place on 26 July.
13 days before the competition kicked off, Oudéa-Castéra plunged herself into the Seine river in an attempt to quell public fears over the levels of E. coli in the water - as many of the games have been planned to take place on the river.
She also shared some videos of herself diving into the River along with triathlete Alexis Hanquinquant.
Oudéa-Castéra can also be seen floating downstream with a huge smile.
The caption on her post read: "Promise kept," which, according to the Daily Mail, was a reference to a promise she made earlier to get in the water before the Games began.
According to the mayor's office in Paris, results showed that the E.Coli levels were just below the safe limit set by the World Triathlon Federation - 900 colony-forming units per 100 milliliters - however, one athlete revealed the extreme lengths he was taking in order to be ready for the triathlon.
