Upset bishops and mixed reviews for Paris Olympics ceremony

French bishops complain about alleged "mockery of Christianity " during Paris Olympics opening ceremony.

Conservatives and far-right politicians in France left aghast by what they saw as a "woke" spectacle featuring LGBTQ performers and a highly racially diverse cast.

The four-hour ceremony saw athletes sail down a six-kilometre ( four-mile ) stretch of the river Seine on 85 boats, the first time a Summer Olympics has opened outside the main stadium.

The artistic rendition also caused uproar among Italy 's far right, with Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini calling it "a really bad start".

American Olympic legend Michael Johnson endorsed the format, writing on X that "I’m not sure the spectator experience was great, but I think athletes enjoyed this opening ceremony". The International Olympic Committee (IOC) praised Jolly 's work. "Every edition (of the Olympics ) brings a stone to the edifice," Christophe Dubi , Olympic Games executive director at the IOC , told reporters. "This has brought a mountain, it's not a small stone." adp-ea-deb/rcw/ju/giv.