Olympics

The 2024 Paris Olympics kick off in three days, but the International Olympic Committee just invested in an entirely new field of competition -- announcing the creation of the Olympic Esports Games!

The IOC held a vote to officially create the Esports Olympics at its 142nd session on Tuesday ... with seemingly no one opposing the move.

This vote comes on the heels of the IOC and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia announcing a joint partnership to host the inaugural tournament in Saudi Arabia in 2025.

Olympic athletes are provided with top-notch protection as soon as they arrive in Paris ... 'cause this year's welcome packages come decked-out with condoms for all!!

Canadian sailor Sarah Douglas -- who holds the country's best individual performance in the sport -- shared her discovery in a TikTok video showing off her Olympic Village room.

Douglas went through a goodie bag that was already waiting for her on her bed ... and it's filled with cool stuff -- including a cell phone, water bottles and a toiletry bag.

Celine Dion will perform Friday at the opening ceremony for the 2024 Olympics in Paris, and organizers have opened the vault for her ... TMZ has learned.

The icon touched down in Paris Monday, and sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ, she is getting ready to take the stage Friday.

Our sources say she will be paid handsomely ... $2 million!!! By the way, that's for just ONE song!

Snoop Dogg is blazing up in a brand new way ... getting picked to carry the Olympic torch ahead of the opening ceremony at the 2024 Paris Games!!

The legendary rapper will be one of the last torchbearers to participate in the traditional relay before it reaches its final landing spot at the Eiffel Tower on Friday.

Snoop will carry the flame through Saint-Denis, the town's mayor said on social media ... and he'll be alongside French rapper MC Solaar and actress Laetitia Casta, according to reports.

Three-time Grand Slam champion Andy Murray just announced he's calling it a career after the 2024 Paris Olympics ... saying he's officially retiring from tennis tournaments following the Games.

Murray -- who will be repping Great Britain in a few days -- shared the news on social media on Tuesday ... setting the expiration date on his 19-year career.

Murray was most recently forced to withdraw from the singles competition at Wimbledon after his recovery from a spinal cyst procedure took longer than anticipated. He did participate in a doubles match with his brother, Jamie Murray, but the duo was eliminated in the first round.

The Olympic gold medal that Clyde Drexler won as a part of the famed 1992 "Dream Team" can now be all yours ... and while you don't have to be a baller like The Glide to get your hands on it -- ya better have some deep pockets!!

TMZ Sports has learned ... the piece of basketball history just hit the block at Goldin Auctions on Monday -- and with a starting bid of $250,000, it's expected to fetch a small fortune when the final gavel comes down.

Unclear why Drexler parted ways with the piece -- but he did fill out a letter of authenticity back in April proclaiming he had no intentions of fighting to get the prize back at any point in the future. He also stated in the LOA that he'll never seek a reproduction of it through the U.S. Olympic Committee.

The medal is now being sold by a consigner.

Simone Biles didn't let the time difference stop her from wishing her husband a happy birthday ... dedicating a mushy social media post to NFL player Jonathan Owens amid preparations for the Paris Olympics.

"Happy happy birthday to my husband, best friend, confidant and party goer ❤️," the 27-year-old gymnast said on Instagram minutes ago.

"Thanks for being the calm to my storm! I love you with all my heart and I can’t wait to see what this year brings! Let’s do it big baby💋😘✨"

Kamala Harris is now the Democratic front-runner to face Donald Trump -- but in her first public remarks since President Biden bowed out ... she kept the focus on young people.

The Vice President addressed the media Monday -- which was already penciled in as part of a college athletes event at the White House -- and while she's already acknowledged she's honored to have JB's backing after he dropped out ... she elaborated just a bit further here.

Kamala -- speaking from the south lawn -- didn't really offer up her formal pitch to the American people on why she's the right one to make a run for the White House ... but she did shout out the Prez for doing the right thing and exiting the race.

Athletes will be capable of doing all the banging they please at the Paris Olympics ... 'cause some star competitors just proved their cardboard beds can handle a ton of force -- and they don't fall apart!!

Tom Daley -- the youngest European diving champion -- and Irish gymnast Rhys McClenaghan got into their Olympic Village rooms over the weekend ... and were quick to test out the myth about their sleeping arrangements being not-so-sex friendly.

Daley showed how the cardboard bed frame is set up with a mattress and Paris Olympics-themed blanket ... and to prove all the "anti-sex" rumors to be bogus, the 30-year-old gold medalist stood up on it and pounded away with his feet before assuming several positions.

LeBron James can add yet another accomplishment to his extensive résumé -- the Lakers superstar was just revealed as a flag bearer for the 2024 Paris Olympics ... becoming the first Team USA men's basketball player to receive the honor.

King James -- who was nominated by Stephen Curry and the rest of the national team -- got word of the selection on Monday ... and he said it's something he isn't taking lightly.

"It's special in the fact that you get an opportunity to represent your country in another fashion," Bron said.

Bella Hadid's readying for legal battle with Adidas ... with sources telling us she's hired legal counsel to take on the athleticwear giant.

Sources familiar with the situation tell TMZ ... Bella's retained lawyers to take action against Adidas for their lack of public accountability -- basically, saying she feels they spearheaded a cruel and damaging campaign.

Our sources say she's upset the company would put out a campaign that would associate anyone with a tragedy like the Munich Massacre at the 1972 Olympics ... with violence running in contrast to BH's own views.

Team USA volleyball star Kristen Nuss says she's fired up to play in the Eiffel Tower's shadow at the Olympics this month ... telling TMZ Sports the picturesque court straight up "gives me chills."

If you haven't seen it yet ... the volleyballers who qualified for the Paris Games will get to play their matchups starting next week just feet away from France's most iconic monument.

Check out some of the photos from the sand -- it's literally right next to the famed structure!!!

Add the 2024 Olympics to the long list of organizations affected by the ongoing global cyber outage ... as the Paris Games' organizing committee revealed some operations have dealt with some hiccups as a result of the ordeal.

With the international competition just days away, the org. released a statement saying the outage has impacted accreditations and the delivery of uniforms. Luckily for organizers, they say operations around the preparations of venues and ticket sales are unaffected -- while the Olympic torch relay is also not caught in the crossfire.

At the press center, security is doing checks outside the building the ol' fashioned way -- breaking out a list of names and scrolling through it manually. For journalists just arriving in the City of Lights, Reuters is reporting the accreditation desk is closed ... and people are being turned away.

Japanese gymnastics star Shoko Miyata will not compete at the 2024 Olympics in Paris later this month ... after an investigation determined she violated team rules by smoking and drinking alcohol.

19-year-old Miyata is Japan's reigning national title holder ... and won bronze in the balance beam competition at the 2022 World Championships. She was slated to represent the squad as captain at the Paris Games.

The Japanese Gymnastics Association issued an apology for the controversy and said Miyata owned up to her actions ... and her coach, Mutsumi Harada, called for sympathy over the matter -- citing the huge expectations to excel at the international level.

Adidas is not getting a gold medal for an advertising campaign with Bella Hadid ... the shoe giant is apologizing for what many are calling a big antisemitic mistake.

Here's the deal ... Adidas made Bella the face of its marketing plan for a retro sneaker referencing the 1972 Munich Olympics ... the Games where Palestinian terrorists infamously murdered 11 members of Israel's Olympic team after taking them hostage.

The issue ... Bella's a Palestinian-American model who has been a vocal critic of Israel amid the war in Gaza ... and her involvement with a shoe commemorating the Munich massacre pissed off folks at the American Jewish Committee.

Rihanna can't help Katie Ledecky in the pool or Simone Biles on the beam, but, she can make sure the athletes look their best away from competition ... RiRi's Fenty Beauty brand inked a sponsorship deal with the Olympics!

And, the Paralympics, too!

Rihanna broke the news on social media Thursday morning ... saying the beauty brand she founded in 2017 will serve as an official "premium partner" of the 2024 Paris Games during the month-long global event.