The Chinese state media outlet Global Times has taken aim at French culture, blaming it for a series of blunders at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics. The outlet criticized the French for their “sense of relaxation,” which it claimed led to errors such as confusing North and South Korea and misspelling athletes’ names on social media.
The Paris Olympics’ opening ceremony faced widespread condemnation in the West for its pagan themes and sexually suggestive content. In South Korea, anger erupted after the South Korean delegation was presented as representing North Korea, with Olympic social media accounts posting blurred images of the South Korean flag. Given the 74-year state of war between the two Koreas, the mistake became a significant diplomatic incident.
Other problems at the Olympics have included pollution in the Seine River delaying events and environmentalists’ push to deny athletes air conditioning, resulting in some athletes leaving the Olympic Village or bringing their own air conditioners.
The Global Times attributed these problems to French cultural attitudes rather than shortcomings of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) or previous Games’ organizers, such as Beijing in 2022. The outlet quoted “Chinese netizens” who joked about the French organizers’ mistakes as reflective of a relaxed and casual approach.
The article pointed out other errors, such as the incorrect identification of an Argentine swimmer as Chinese, which embarrassed the athlete. The Global Times concluded that these mistakes illustrated a commendable yet problematic French “openness, freedom, and inclusiveness.”
This criticism aligns with past Global Times editorials, such as a 2018 piece that disparaged Brazilian culture during the 2016 Rio Olympics, suggesting Brazilians were less diligent than the Chinese.
Despite recent warm relations between China and France, highlighted by President Xi Jinping’s visit to France, the Global Times did not hold back in its criticism. Conversely, the outlet praised Chinese manufacturing’s role in the Paris Games, emphasizing China’s contributions to the event’s technological and visual success.
China has hosted the Olympics twice: the 2008 Summer Olympics and the 2022 Winter Olympics, both in Beijing. The latter was controversial due to China’s human rights record, particularly the genocide against the Uyghur population, and the COVID-19 pandemic’s origins.
The Global Times’ critique of the Paris Olympics underscores ongoing tensions and differing cultural perspectives between China and Western countries, even amidst diplomatic efforts to strengthen bilateral relationships.