Wikipedia

Draft:Drag and the Olympic Games

There have been multiple instances in which drag has been featured as part of the Olympic Games. The closing ceremony of the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney included dozens of drag performers to commemorate The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert as part of a tribute to the cinema of Australia. Leading up to the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, Nicky Doll and two other drag queens participated in the torch relay, and Nymphia Wind performed at the Cultural Olympiad. Nicky Doll, Paloma, Piche, Kam Hugh, and other drag performers were featured in a scene of the opening ceremony.

The inclusion of drag has not been without controversy. The drag performance in 2000 was criticized by some church groups and politicians, and some critics in 2024 considered the scene to be blasphemous, drawing comparisons to Leonardo da Vinci's The Last Supper. In addition to drag-related programming at the Olympic Games, the Drag Race franchise has had Olympics-inspired programming, as well as guest appearances by Olympic athletes.

History

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2000 Summer Olympics

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The closing ceremony of the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney featured 46 drag performers commemorating the 1994 film The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, as part of a larger tribute to Australian film. The performers wore costumes from the film, which earned Tim Chappel and Lizzy Gardiner an Academy Award for Best Costume Design, as well as original gowns.[1] The inclusion of drag was criticized by some church groups and far-right politicians.[2][3][4]

2024 Summer Olympics

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For the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, French drag queen Nicky Doll (pictured in 2022) carried the Olympic torch during the relay and appeared in the opening ceremony.

Three drag queens—Nicky Doll, who competed on the twelfth season of the American television series RuPaul's Drag Race and hosts the French spin-off series Drag Race France, as well as Minima Gesté and Miss Martini—carried the Olympic torch during the torch relay for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. This was the first time drag artists participated in the relay.[5] Additionally, Taiwanese-American drag queen Nymphia Wind, who won the sixteenth season of RuPaul's Drag Race, performed at the Cultural Olympiad's Taiwan Pavilion.[6]

The opening ceremony's styling and costumes director was French television presenter Daphné Bürki, who is also a judge on Drag Race France.[7]

Opening ceremony

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See also: 2024_Summer_Olympics_opening_ceremony § Festivité_performance
 
 
Drag Race France contestants Paloma (left) and Piche (right) participated in the opening ceremony.

The opening ceremony also featured drag queens, including Nicky Doll and Drag Race France contestants Paloma and Piche, who walked a red carpet runway along the Passerelle Debilly.[8] The queens were joined by other models and performers, including disc jockey Barbara Butch, who wore a silver headdress resembling a halo.[9] The performers were "dressed as Greek gods in Louis Vuitton costumes to celebrate the history of French art and fashion", according to Christian Holub of Entertainment Weekly.[10] Another segment in the opening ceremony featured Drag Race France contestant Kam Hugh.[11]

 
Some critics of the scene with drag queens drew comparisons to Leonardo da Vinci's The Last Supper, which depicts the Last Supper of Jesus with the Twelve Apostles.

The runway scene received criticism and garnered a mixed reaction.[12] Some critics interpreted it as a mockery of Leonardo da Vinci's mural painting The Last Supper, and French Catholic bishops were among those who took offense.[9][13] French politician Marion Maréchal denounced the segment,[12] and former U.S. president Donald Trump called the scene "a disgrace".[9] Elon Musk said the performance was "extremely disrespectful to Christians".[8] American actress Candace Cameron Bure said it was blasphemous and "disgusting".[14] Mike Johnson, the Republican speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, and actor Rob Schneider also expressed disapproval.[10]

Contrastingly, the scene received praise from others for "celebrating queer visibility and LGBTQ+ inclusivity", according to Cosmopolitan.[15] Among those who expressed appreciation for the segment were Bure's former co-star Jodie Sweetin, as well as Le Filip, a Croatian-French drag queen who won the third season of Drag Race France.[14] The ceremony's artistic director Thomas Jolly and other participants said The Last Supper was not an inspiration.[9] Event organizers called the segment an "interpretation of the Greek God Dionysus" that "makes us aware of the absurdity of violence between human beings",[8] and said the goal was to "celebrate community tolerance", not "an intention to show disrespect to any religious group".[9]

After Laurence Fox called the participating drag queens "deviant little pedos", Nicky Doll filed a defamation lawsuit.[16] In response to the negative criticism, on social media Nicky Doll described the significance of the performance, which she said was dedicated to "young queer people".[17] Butch said she was harassed online and filed a legal complaint.[18]

Television programming

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The Drag Race franchise has had Olympics-inspired programming and guest participation by Olympic athletes. The main challenge of "The Draglympics" (2019), the sixth episode of the eleventh season of RuPaul's Drag Race, was inspired by the games. American figure skaters Mirai Nagasu and Adam Rippon were guest judges on the episode.[19][20] British-American skier Gus Kenworthy appeared on the season finale of the show's tenth season,[21] as well as an episode of the fourth season of the spin-off series RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars, both of which aired in 2018.[22] English diver Tom Daley was a guest judge on an episode of the second series of RuPaul's Drag Race: UK vs. the World (2024).[23]

References

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  1. ^ Maskell, Emily (2024-07-29). "The Sydney 2000 Olympics also featured drag queens – where was the outrage then?". PinkNews. Archived from the original on 2024-08-02. Retrieved 2024-08-03.
  2. ^ "Drag Queens to 'Come Out' at Aussie Olympics". ABC News. Archived from the original on 2024-08-05. Retrieved 2024-08-03.
  3. ^ "Handbagging for Olympic queens". NZ Herald. 2024-08-04. Archived from the original on 2024-08-03. Retrieved 2024-08-03.
  4. ^ "BBC News | ASIA-PACIFIC | Olympics to feature drag queens". news.bbc.co.uk. Archived from the original on 2021-04-10. Retrieved 2024-08-03.
  5. ^ "French Drag Artists Made History as First in Drag to Carry an Olympic Torch | GLAAD". glaad.org. 2024-07-25. Archived from the original on 2024-08-03. Retrieved 2024-08-03.
  6. ^ "Nymphia Wind to wow at Paris Cultural Olympiad - Taipei Times". www.taipeitimes.com. 2024-05-14. Archived from the original on 2024-08-05. Retrieved 2024-08-03.
  7. ^ Diderich, Joelle (2024-07-23). "Everything You Need to Know About the 2024 Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony". WWD. Archived from the original on 2024-07-29. Retrieved 2024-08-03.
  8. ^ a b c Price, Brian (2024-07-27). "Drag queens stun at Opening Ceremony with 'Last Supper' exhibition". NBC New York. Archived from the original on 2024-07-28. Retrieved 2024-08-03.
  9. ^ a b c d e "Drag queen in Olympic opening ceremony has no regrets". NBC News. 2024-07-31. Archived from the original on 2024-08-03. Retrieved 2024-08-03.
  10. ^ a b "'Drag Race' star in Paris Olympics opening ceremony reacts to conservative backlash". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on 2024-08-02. Retrieved 2024-08-03.
  11. ^ "Nicky Doll & French queens stun at Olympics opening ceremony". www.out.com. Archived from the original on 2024-08-05. Retrieved 2024-08-03.
  12. ^ a b "Drag queens shine at Olympics opening, but 'Last Supper' tableau draws criticism". Associated Press. 2024-07-27. Archived from the original on 2024-07-29. Retrieved 2024-08-03.
  13. ^ Daw, Stephen (2024-07-29). "Olympics Clarify That the Opening Ceremony's Drag Performance Was Not Mocking 'The Last Supper'". Billboard. Archived from the original on 2024-08-03. Retrieved 2024-08-03.
  14. ^ a b Thomas, Carly (2024-07-28). "Olympics Drag Performance Seemingly Resembling 'Last Supper' Draws Backlash From Conservative Leaders". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 2024-08-05. Retrieved 2024-08-03.
  15. ^ "Here's the Latest on "The Last Supper" Controversy at the 2024 Olympics". Cosmopolitan. 2024-07-29. Archived from the original on 2024-08-05. Retrieved 2024-08-04.
  16. ^ Ramachandran, Naman (2024-08-03). "'RuPaul's Drag Race' Star Nicky Doll Sues Laurence Fox Over Olympics Ceremony Remarks Calling Drag Performers 'Deviant Little Pedos'". Variety. Archived from the original on 2024-08-05. Retrieved 2024-08-03.
  17. ^ Robledo, Jordan (2024-07-28). "Drag Race France's Nicky Doll shuts down trolls upset over Olympics performance". GAY TIMES. Archived from the original on 2024-08-03. Retrieved 2024-08-03.
  18. ^ "Barbara Butch: French DJ files legal complaint over Paris Olympics opening ceremony abuse". www.bbc.com. Archived from the original on 2024-08-04. Retrieved 2024-08-04.
  19. ^ Jones, Charlie (2019-04-05). "RuPaul's Drag Race season 11 episode 6: Security? A queen is robbed". PinkNews. Archived from the original on 2024-03-16. Retrieved 2024-08-04.
  20. ^ "RuPaul's Drag Race medals in camp, cheese, and fun at the 69th International Draglympics". The A.V. Club. Archived from the original on 2023-11-07. Retrieved 2024-08-04.
  21. ^ Crowley, Patrick (2018-06-29). "'RuPaul's Drag Race': 5 Memorable Moments From Season 10 Finale". Billboard. Archived from the original on 2023-05-29. Retrieved 2024-08-04.
  22. ^ Jones, Charlie (2018-12-29). "All Stars 4 Episode 3 Ru-flections: Was that leak a calculated shot at Gia?". PinkNews. Archived from the original on 2024-08-05. Retrieved 2024-08-04.
  23. ^ Damshenas, Sam (2024-01-24). "Drag Race UK vs the World: Tom Daley, Kim Petras and more confirmed as guest judges". GAY TIMES. Archived from the original on 2024-08-05. Retrieved 2024-08-04.
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