An image of French Sports Minister Amelie Oudea-Castera planting a kiss close to the neck of President Emmanuel Macron during the opening ceremony of the Olympics has caused a stir on social media. The image shows Oudea-Castera wrapping her hand around the President's neck in a close embrace before kissing him below his ear.
Social media users were quick to point out the awkwardness of the situation as Prime Minister Gabriel Attal could be seen looking the other way.
Since the photo went viral, social media has been flooded with reactions and weighed in on the gesture. "I find this photo indecent, it’s not worthy of a president and a minister," one user posted on X.
Another commented, "Brigitte (Macron's wife) won’t like it". "Gabriel Attal, he pretends to look elsewhere! He doesn't know where to stand!" a third user said.
However, others said a mountain was being made out of a molehill and cited similar pictures of Oudea-Castera kissing athletes, insisting that she was just passionate about France hosting the high-profile event.
"The French are known for kissing on both cheeks as a greeting. Vive La France!" a user tweeted.
The photo grabbed the attention after it was first posted by the French magazine 'Madame Figaro', which called the kiss "strange", the New York Post reported. It also claimed that the Sports Minister, a former professional tennis player, had a penchant for drawing attention to herself.
Oudea-Castera has been embroiled in quite a few controversies this year. Earlier this month, she dived into the Seine river in an attempt to allay fears of Olympic athletes over E.coli and bacteria levels in the water.
However, a number of events, including the men's triathlon, have been postponed due to water quality concerns.
In January, Oudea-Castera was given an additional charge as education minister. However, her stint was short-lived, and she was removed from the post in less than a month after it came to light that she had criticised government-run public schools.
