Olympics

Helen Smart, an Olympic swimmer who represented Great Britain in the 2000 Summer Games in Sydney, died suddenly at the age of 43, according to the school where she was working.

"It is with great sadness and regret that I have to announce the sudden death of our beloved Headteacher, Mrs. Helen Smart," an administrator announced on social media, breaking the awful news to students and parents.

As a 19-year-old, Smart (known by her maiden name of Helen Don-Duncan), the British backstroke champion, competed for GB in the 50-meter backstroke and 200-meter backstroke in Australia.

She retired from swimming shortly after, going into education, where Helen became a principal at Worsley Mesnes Community Primary School in England.

After the school announced Helen's passing, her husband Craig Smart received a ton of love from the community. He responded with a comment of his own, despite dealing with the tremendous loss of his wife.

"Thank you for your kind words. She loved the school, staff, children and parents so much. She was so proud to reach her goal of being Head Teacher. She used to say to me all the time she could never see herself at another school. She was Worsley Mesnes through and through!"

Craig continued, offering some sage life advice ... "Please learn from this and live your best life, no regrets, take lots of photos, make memories and keep smiling just like Helen always did! Love to you all! Xx"

In addition to competing in Sydney, Helen won the bronze medal at the 1998 Commonwealth Games, in addition to several other titles.

Kim Kardashian is putting her name in the hat for the Team USA gymnastics team ... showing off her tumbling skills while rocking a bikini at the beach!!

The reality TV star and business mogul decided to put her athleticism to the test with a cartwheel during a luxurious getaway this week ... and she stuck the landing!!

Now, is KK destined for the 2024 Olympics in Paris?? No ... but she certainly appeared to be enjoying herself nonetheless.

Kim -- who doesn't have the biggest background in sports but played a cheerleader in "Disaster Movie" -- subbed a leotard for a black thong and white t-shirt for the stunt ... making it quite the cheeky affair.

The comment section cracked lighthearted jokes under the pics ... with one user saying, "thank you Kim Kardashian for putting gymnastics on the map."

Another account wittingly added, "Kimone Biles."

Kim may not be an Olympian herself, but she's still connected to the world's biggest sporting event -- her SKIMS clothing line was an official sponsor for Team USA for the summer games in Tokyo.

Larry Nassar was reportedly stabbed multiple times while in prison over the weekend ... after he was involved in an altercation with another inmate.

The attack, according to the Associated Press, happened inside Florida's United States Penitentiary Coleman on Sunday.

The outlet reports the 59-year-old disgraced sports doc suffered wounds to his back and his chest ... though as of Monday, he was in stable condition. No further details surrounding the incident were released.

We've reached out to United States Penitentiary officials for comment, but so far, no word back yet.

Nassar is currently serving decades behind bars ... after hundreds of female gymnasts -- including former Team USA stars Aly Raisman and Jordyn Wieber -- testified that he sexually abused them.

Nassar has been involved in at least one conflict with a fellow inmate before ... back in 2018, his attorney said he was assaulted just hours after he was released into general population at the United States Penitentiary in Tucson, AZ.

The incident actually led to his transfer to United States Penitentiary Coleman.

Story developing ...

Megan Rapinoe is retiring from soccer -- but she's got one last thing to achieve on her checklist before doing so ... winning another World Cup.

The longtime U.S. women's soccer legend -- who's been on the national team since '06 -- made the announcement Saturday at a presser, telling reporters this upcoming tourney would be her last as a professional ... and that she'd be hanging up her cleats afterward.

She does say there'll be more to come for her down the road -- presumably meaning she'll still be involved in soccer in some capacity -- but first, her focus is on snagging the gold.

During her remarks ... MR got a little choked up as she reflected on her storied career, thanking teammates, coaches, fans and everyone who's supported her over the years. She also touched on the game itself and commented on just how far it's taken her in her life.

She also shouts out her partner, WNBA star Sue Bird, for giving her inspiration in coming to the decision -- ICYMI, SB announced her retirement from pro basketball just last year.

Megan's thoughts are touching ... and it's a huge moment, seeing how she's been on several U.S. Women's Soccer teams, having played with some of the greats of the modern era. She's played with the likes of Abby Wambach, Alex Morgan, Carli Lloyd, Hope Solo and so many others ... and is, by and large, considered to be one of the final players of the old guard to still be on the pitch today. She's also served as a captain on the team for years now.

Of course, her accolades are many. Megan's helped the U.S. win the World Cup twice, and she's also led the U.S. to a gold medal in the Olympics before. MR's won a lot of awards, too, including the Golden Boot and Golden Ball from FIFA for her standout performances.

Lance Armstrong's opinions on transgender athletes have rubbed a lot of people the wrong way recently … including a pair of his "Stars on Mars" castmates, who actually confronted him about it all while he was on the competition show.

The former cycling star has shared his two cents on the matter over the last few weeks repeatedly ... especially after filming an episode of his "The Forward" podcast with Caitlyn Jenner.

On the pod, he and Jenner spoke about trans women competing against biological females -- and the two appeared to share the opinion that there should be a separate category for the parties, due to what they believed was an unfair advantage of being born a male.

While filming "Stars on Mars," Armstrong made no attempts to distance himself from that stance ... telling Ronda Rousey he doesn't see why it'd be "unfair" to introduce a new category to the sports competition landscape to assuage the issues.

Quickly, however, Tinashe jumped in to confront him over the thought process.

"We just have to care about if you other-ise people," the "2-On" singer said on the new Fox show. "It's not good for their mental health."

When Armstrong asked her to expound, she added, "Like, kind of, like, exclude them from the same spaces and places that everyone else is."

Armstrong swore he wasn't trying to exclude anyone with his ideas ... saying, "I sound like a right-wing lunatic. I'm not. I'm the most liberal person -- but from a sporting perspective ..."

But, Tinashe wasn't having any of it ... later telling Fox cameras, "I definitely didn't think that he should be the spokesperson for that."

Adam Rippon -- an openly gay figure skater -- also chimed in on Armstrong's remarks ... making it clear he was not a fan of them either.

"That is so disheartening," he said.

Rippon further explained he believed Armstrong's words could shake up the whole dynamic of the show going forward.

The NFL's full of blazing-fast guys, but there's one who's a little bit quicker than the rest ... and no, it's not Tyreek Hill.

That distinction belongs to 28-year-old Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Devon Allen ... who happens to be an elite-level hurdler. The 3x track national champ and NCAA football champ recently competed in a USATF event in NYC, where he clocked a 13.04, the fourth-fastest time in the world in 2023.

Days after the race (where Devon finished 2nd), TMZ Sports talked to the former Oregon track star and 2x Olympian ... and asked him if he was the fastest player in the league.

"I definitely am [the fastest]," Allen said matter of factly.

Of course, Hill (60m) and DK Metcalf (100m), two bonafide stars considered among the fastest in the league, also recently tried their hand on the track ... something Devon says he respects.

"I'm not gonna roast those guys because what they did was impressive. I raced Tyreek Hill when I was in high school. We raced and he smoked me when we were in high school and DK Metcalf ran a 10.3 a couple years ago is super impressive for a guy that's 6'4", 6'3", 225, but I think especially at the top level, top 5, top 10 in the world, there's a big gap in terms of just performance."

We also talked to Devon, who once ran a 12.84 in the 110m hurdles (the world record is 12.80), about his return to football ... after a 6-year layoff following college, when he focused solely on track.

"The first whirlwind for me was training camp, getting thrown into the fire, and realizing this isn't college anymore. I played at the University of Oregon, which is high-level ball, but the NFL takes it the another level," Allen told us.

Simone Biles is BACK -- the 26-year-old gymnastics legend is set to make her big return to the sport at the U.S. Classic later this year ... her first competition since withdrawing from multiple events at the Olympics to focus on her mental health.

Team USA announced Wednesday Biles will compete at the Aug. 5 event ... saying, "BILES IS BACK."

By the way, Biles is no stranger to the competition -- she's the five-time women's champion.

Biles famously backed out of the individual all-around and the majority of the team final at the Tokyo Games in July 2021 ... revealing she was dealing with a bad case of the "twisties," which could have resulted in serious injury had she fought through the issue.

Biles -- the seven-time Olympic medalist -- went on to win a bronze medal in the balance beam finals ... but since traveling back to the States in 2021, she has only trained her skills in the gym.

"It means more than all of the golds," the two-time Olympian told the Today Show about her third-place finish in 2021.

On Team USA's announcement on Instagram, two-time Olympic gold skier Mikaela Shiffrin celebrated Biles' return ... writing, "Yes!! 🙌 "

Recently, there's been plenty more for the gymnastics G.O.A.T. to celebrate about -- she tied the knot with the Green Bay Packers' Jonathan Owens in May ... and who knows, maybe the couple could take another honeymoon in Paris ... at the 2024 Summer Olympics!!!

Shaun White and Nina Dobrev are basically morphing into the same person at this point -- the couple threw on some matching outfits and shared an electric scooter as they zoomed through NYC this week!!

The retired snowboarder and his actress girlfriend decided to squeeze together on one vehicle as they coasted to their destination ... but they didn't seem to mind, 'cause they were both smiling from ear to ear!!

To make things even more adorable, White and Dobrev matched for the occasion ... rocking all black tops and bottoms, white shoes and sunglasses.

36-year-old Shaun took control of the steering during the joyride ... while Nina, 34, appeared to multitask and check out her phone. Gotta give the "Vampire Diaries" star some props 'cause she was wearing a bit of a heel!!

White and Dobrev first met in 2019 ... and have been inseparable ever since.

Offset made the most of his time at Paris Fashion Week ... which he capped off by burning down the runway with a surprise performance!!!

TMZ Hip Hop obtained video of Offset blazing through the perfect song for modeling ... his Metro Boomin-produced classic hit "Ric Flair Drip," which he performed Tuesday during the Li-Ning Menswear Spring/Summer 2024 show.

The collection is designed by Oscar Wang and titled "My-Verse" ... which Offset ripped through his on the track.

Offset virtually managed to be in 2 places at once for the evening ... Pharrell also had his debut fashion show as Louis Vuitton's Men's Creative Director, and Offset was also among the many celebrity guests to support. He even dapped up Jay-Z at the event.

MrBeast is known for his celeb collabs, giving away a ton of cash and even hosting wild competitions ... but one of those competitions took a turn for the worse, resulting in several contestants getting injured.

The social media megastar recently purchased a plot of land in North Carolina complete with a studio and housing, serving as the perfect spot to create content.

Sources with direct knowledge tell us on Monday, Beast hosted an Olympic-style challenge -- with reps from countries all around the world. We're told the competition included some sort of running event with hurdles and obstacles.

At some point, the competition became too intense, and possibly dangerous, resulting in what we're told was several of the athletes sustaining injuries.

A rep for MrBeast tells TMZ, "MrBeast was working on an upcoming video with athletic challenges, and there were three minor medical issues out of almost 200 participants. Medical personnel attended to the people immediately and released them shortly after.”

While we don't yet know the exact details of the injuries, our sources tell us the team has resumed filming ... so if there was any potential for more danger, that's clearly no longer an issue.

In what has made a tragic death even harder to handle, gold medalist track star Tori Bowie was pregnant and in labor at the time she died ... TMZ has learned.

According to the coroner's report, obtained by TMZ, 32-year-old Bowie was found dead in bed at her Florida home on May 2. The report states she died from complications of childbirth, was about 8 months pregnant and "undergoing labor" when she passed.

TMZ broke the story -- Bowie's loved ones became concerned after they'd gone several days without hearing from her and called cops to do a welfare check on the young athlete. When deputies from the Orange County Sheriff's Office entered her home, they found Tori deceased.

At the 2016 Summer Olympics in Brazil, Tori won three medals ... including one gold as a member of the women's 4x100 meter relay team, a silver in the 100-meter dash and bronze in the 200-meter dash.

In 2017, Tori was declared the world's fastest woman -- winning the 100-meter dash at the 2017 IAAF World Championships in London with a blistering time of 10.85 seconds.

At the time of her death, Tori's management team told us, "We've lost a client, dear friend, daughter and sister," the sports agency said. "Tori was a champion … a beacon of light that shined so bright! We're truly heartbroken and our prayers are with the family and friends."

Usain Bolt's speed certainly isn't limited to the track ... 'cause the Jamaican sprinter flew past his opponents to score an impressive goal in a charity soccer match on Sunday!!

The 8-time Olympic gold medalist ditched his running spikes for some cleats at the Soccer Aid for UNICEF event ... and he wasn't just there to show face -- he balled out!!

Bolt -- fittingly rocking a No. 9.58 jersey to represent his world-record 100-meter dash time -- broke things open 23 minutes into the competition ... zooming past the last line of defense to put the ball in the back of the net for team World XI.

The best part of the highlight came when Bolt celebrated the goal -- first, he did English soccer star Marcus Rashford's signature move ... before switching up to his famous "To Di World" point alongside former French pro Patrice Evra.

Bolt's teammate Tommy Fury was the first to run up and congratulate him ... and it was smooth sailing for their squad the rest of the match, thanks to Robbie Keane's pair of goals.

Former One Direction member Liam Payne wasn't all upset about England's 4-2 loss to World XI ... considering the game raised more than $14 MILLION for the humanitarian organization.

Bolt previously flirted with the idea of playing soccer in the States -- remember, he told us back in 2018 he'd listen to offers from MLS teams if they came with the money.

Jake Paul is in love and he doesn't care who knows it -- the Problem Child just opened up on his feelings for his Olympic speed skater girlfriend, Jutta Leerdam ... saying he's straight-up smitten like a kitten.

The boxer was a puddle of love when talking about the Dutch athlete on his brother Logan's "Impaulsive" podcast this week ... saying she's the total package.

"Jutta is such an amazing woman and like, she reminds me so much of mom," Jake told Logan. "She's so sweet and cooking and she amazes me for how mature she is, how emotionally intelligent she is, how good she is at communicating, how good she is at loving, the list goes on and on and on."

"She's like the purest soul I've ever met out of anyone."

Jake even gushed about Jutta's body ... saying it's "sexy as f***" that they're the same height.

"There's more woman, and she's so curvy, has the nicest body in the f***in' world, and I'm obsessed with her," Jake -- who stands at around 6 feet tall -- said. "Basically, I get more woman."

As we previously reported, Jake and Jutta met through Instagram late last year ... and really started to hit it off after spending time together in Miami a few months ago.

Now, the couple is to the point where they're double-dating with Logan and his model girlfriend of one year, Nina Agdal.

"Her smile, her eyes, her laugh just like, give me life on a daily basis and I've never met anyone like her," Jake continued. "And she's only 24 and she's already such an incredible, determined, smart, hard-working, loyal, trustworthy person ... and every f***ing adjective that exists."

Of course, Jake famously dated Julia Rose ... but he's clearly thrilled with how things played out in the love department.

Joe Burrow's professional women's volleyball league just added some serious firepower ... Olympic legend Kerri Walsh Jennings has now come on board -- and she's bringing a team with her!!

Walsh Jennings -- a three-time Olympic gold medalist -- announced the move earlier this week ... and told TMZ Sports on Thursday she's absolutely fired up to partner with the Bengals quarterback and others in the new league.

If you're unfamiliar, Burrow helped launch the Pro Volleyball Federation earlier this year ... promising to bring super competitive, professional indoor volleyball games to cities throughout the country. Jason Derulo has already revealed he's in on the project, telling us back in February he's launching the league's Nebraska team.

Walsh Jennings, in addition to being an equity holder in the league, is bringing on a squad of her own in San Diego ... and she said with her, Burrow, Derulo and others involved, the org. has sky-high potential.

"What's clear is that the opportunity is ginormous here," Walsh Jennings told us. "The sport is so hungry for this elite, top, most-echelon place, and the time is now for women's sports."

Walsh Jennings says the goal for the league -- which will kick off its inaugural season in February 2024 -- is to ultimately have seven or eight teams. Right now, it's at six. Every squad, Walsh Jennings said, will have 14 players -- and signings will happen soon.

And, when it all finally comes together and they get to go head-to-head during a real season ... she promised she was going to be super competitive with Burrow and Derulo.

"Just knowing what I know of the other owners," she said, "I know we're all going to take this, carry this crown of being owners with a lot of pride, a lot of honor. And we're going to want to win."

Brittney Griner made her long-awaited return to the basketball court Friday night after her 10-month detainment in Russia last year, but it didn't have the ending her fans were hoping for.

The Phoenix Mercury center still scored 10 points and pulled down 3 rebounds as the Mercury fell to the LA Sparks by a score of 90 to 71 in the WNBA preseason game.

Griner only played for 17 minutes, but she made the most of it, and her teammates were psyched to see her back on the court, hugging and high-fiving while also giving each other chest bumps.

The crowd was ecstatic to see Brittney ... they erupted in applause when her name was first announced inside the Footprint Center in Phoenix.

After the game, Griner told reporters that she was "grateful" to have the opportunity to play again and would not take a single day for granted.

She also said she had a different experience hearing the national anthem before the game got underway.

“Hearing the national anthem, it definitely hit different," she said, adding, "It’s like when you go for the Olympics."

Griner was critical of her on-court performance, explaining, “Not where I want it to be, but on the right track. We’re making the right moves."

But, given what's Griner's been through, it must have felt in some way like a victory.

Life couldn't get any sweeter for Simone Biles and Jonathan Owens -- 'cause just days after the newlyweds tied the knot in Cabo, the NFL player signed with the Green Bay Packers!!

The 7-time Olympic medalist shared her reaction to the news on Friday ... posting a photo of her already draped in Packers merch as her new hubby inked his contract.

"So proud of you baby!" Biles said of the move. "Here’s to new beginnings! Year 6! LFG!"

Owens, who suited up for Texans from 2019 to 2022, is also hyped ... saying, "New beginnings. Perfect cap to an amazing week."

Of course, Owens is referring to his beautiful wedding last weekend ... which was as extravagant as they come.

The 26-year-old gymnast wore a gorgeous gown from famous designer Galia Lahav ... and Owens looked sharp with a beige suit and tie in front of family and friends.

The marital bliss comes 15 months after Owens proposed with a massive 3-carat diamond ring.

New marriage, new team, what's next -- a new baby?!?

Remember, Biles did previously mention Jonathan wants a "football team" of kids down the road.