PETALING JAYA, Feb 10 — French health minister Olivier Veran became an overnight sensation after he stripped off half of his shirt to receive his Covid-19 vaccine recently.

Veran, 40, posted a Twitter photo of himself getting his first dose of the Oxford University/AstraZeneca jab on Monday.

He included a brief caption that read, “Vaccinated.”

 

 

Veran chose to get inoculated in public to inspire confidence in Covid-19 vaccines but he seems to have gone beyond his original goal by achieving heartthrob status online.

Twitter users couldn’t help but fawn over his macho physique, with one New York journalist saying Veran’s photo looked like it was lifted from a “coronavirus vaccine beefcake pinup calendar.”

 

 

Another user branded Veran’s promotion of vaccine uptake as “Operation Smoulder” thanks to his piercing gaze.

 

 

Others also appreciated Veran’s endearing gesture of covering up his chest with his shirt in an attempt to stay modest.

Several male European politicians have been in the spotlight for the same reason in recent weeks as they stripped off their clothes to receive their Covid-19 vaccines.

Greek prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis made headlines after a photo of his “vaccine pose” went viral last month.

 

 

Meanwhile, Croatian finance minister Zdravko Marić earned the new nickname of Captain Croatia after his buff stature stole the show during his Covid-19 vaccine session in early January.

 

 

One Malaysian user also joked that male politicians here shouldn’t copy their European counterparts and strip down when getting their vaccines, or risk onlookers becoming “short-sighted.”