Pat McAfee Slams ‘Disrespectful’ Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony

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ESPN’s Pat McAfee has some thoughts on the controversial Olympic Opening Ceremony in Paris.

On Friday, the Opening Ceremony featured a presentation depicting the Greek God Dionysus, which many viewers felt was disrespectful towards Christianity and the Last Supper.

Thomas Jolly, the artistic director of the Olympics Opening Ceremony in Paris, explained that he wasn’t trying to mock the Last Supper but was attempting to depict a “pagan celebration.”

Via BMFTV

“There’s Dionysus arriving on a table. Why is he there? First and foremost, he is the god of celebration in Greek mythology, and the tableau is called ‘Festivity’. He is also the god of wine, which is also one of the jewels of France, and the father of Séquana, the goddess of the river Seine. The idea was to depict a big pagan celebration linked to the gods of Olympus, and thus the Olympics.”

During the latest episode of the Pat McAfee Show, McAfee slammed the Opening Ceremony because he believed the presentations should have revolved around sports instead of artistic expression.

“I have no idea how any of these things are the start of the Olympics or to announce that the Olympics are taking place. It was form of artistic expression that was paying trib– whatever. We just want it to revolve around sport. And we can’t have the Opening Ceremony be a reason why people won’t watch these athletes who have sacrificed everything about their lives to be great at something and only get to experience and celebrate once every four years.”