Ukraine

The world is on the brink of a terrible food crisis if Russia doesn't lift the blockade of Ukraine's Black Sea ports ... so says Ukrainian President Zelensky.

Zelensky made a televised announcement Thursday, warning dozens of countries may face a physical food shortage because Ukraine is unable to export a huge amount of products including wheat, corn and vegetable oil.

Zelensky says these products and many others play a stabilizing role in the global market. And, as a result, millions of people may starve. For now, he says, he's currently talking to PM Boris Johnson and other world leaders to figure out how to lift the Russian blockade.

In the message, Zelensky took a jab at Putin -- saying he's trying to blackmail the world with hunger. He says, "While we are looking for ways to protect freedom, another person is destroying it."

Trevor Reed, a former Marine who was detained in Russia for nearly 3 years, is calling for the release of WNBA superstar Brittney Griner, explaining the conditions in the country are "like you're waking up to a nightmare."

Reed, who just was released from Russian custody as part of a prisoner swap in April, asked for a sense of urgency in the Griner case at a rally organized by Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee in the hooper's Houston hometown on Monday.

"We need to all speak out for these Americans, because every single one of us is an American," Reed said. "Every day that you're in prison there, it's like you're waking up to a nightmare."

Reed said he believes it's pointless to let Griner's case play out in the court systems in the foreign country ... explaining, "There is no justice in Russia."

"Brittney and Paul [Whelan] will not receive justice in Russia," he said. "They will not receive a fair trial in Russia.”

Griner has been in custody since mid-February -- when Russian authorities claimed she tried to smuggle hashish oil into the country.

Reed said at the rally what she is going through is inhumane ... explaining the conditions that he experienced while in Russian custody included rotten food and lack of adequate medical care.

Griner has another court hearing in Russia slated for later this month ... but Reed said at the rally he's not optimistic it'll lead to anything positive for the 31-year-old Phoenix Mercury center.

Val Chmerkovskiy knows there's a lot going on outside of the crisis in Ukraine ... and he's asking people to do what they can to support his home, while understanding it's not easy.

We got the "Dancing With the Stars" pro at LAX and asked him if he's noticing any Ukraine war fatigue among Americans who raced to help Ukrainians stand up to Vladimir Putin's invasion.

The war's been raging for a few months now, and Val says it's hard for people to stay focused on supporting Ukraine relief efforts ... given all the turmoil and daily struggles that most folks here are dealing with.

Val's got his own foundation building homes for refugees over in Europe ... and he says it's sometimes even hard for him to reach out to his own supporters to rally around Ukraine.

It's an interesting perspective from Val ... he's thankful for all the support so far, and the pledges going forward, but knows lots of folks are struggling to keep their heads above water and understands it's not realistic for everyone to put all their focus on Ukraine.

Oleg Prudky -- a two-time Ukrainian boxing champion -- was killed while defending his country against Russian troops, the Ukrainian Boxing Federation announced on Monday.

He was just 30 years old.

"It is with sorrow that we inform you that the master of sports of international boxing class, the champion of Ukraine Oleg Prudky, was killed in the fights with Russian occupiers," the Ukrainian Boxing Federation said in a statement on its Instagram page.

"Boxing Federation of Ukraine expresses condolences to the boxer's family. Eternal memory to you Olezh."

Prudky was working with the Cherkasy Police special forces and was one of the four officers that were killed during an attack on Sunday, police said in a statement to talkSPORT on Tuesday.

"On May 22, defending the state sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, our colleagues, police officers of the Special Operations Department of the KORD Department of the Main Directorate of the National Police, were killed," the police said.

"They defended Ukraine – the dead police heroes of Cherkasy region."

Before joining the forces to defend his country, Prudky boxed in amateur and semi-pro leagues and competed in several European championships.

The super-lightweight became a two-time amateur champion and was part of the Ukrainian Otamans team in the World Series of Boxing semi-pro competition.

Prudky leaves behind a wife, Mariana, and two daughters. His wife tragically wrote on Instagram following his death, "How do I tell them that they will never see you again."

"You are my ANGEL! I LOVE YOU SO MUCH"

2x Lakers champ Slava Medvedenko -- Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal's former teammate in Los Angeles -- is doing everything in his power to protect his home country of Ukraine against Russian forces ... including picking up an AK-47.

Medvedenko, who spent 7 seasons in the NBA and won two championships ('01,'02) with Mamba in L.A., grew up in Ukraine and took up arms to help defend his country.

The 43-year-old has been involved in the war almost since the first day Vladimir Putin ordered his military to invade the sovereign country ... sparking one of the most violent conflicts in recent history.

Slava provided The Athletic with a very detailed account of what life is like for him as he protects the tallest building in Kyiv -- the neighborhood he lives in with his wife and kids.

The former power forward, who had no military experience prior to joining the war, told the outlet things are typically quiet during the day, but fighting intensifies during the nighttime.

Equipped with binoculars and a Russian-made Kalashnikov (AK-47), Medvedenko recalled a night when he watched Russian forces fire more than 20 missiles ... in an attempt to eliminate Ukraine's radar system.

Of course, the professional hooper, who played alongside one of the most potent 1-2 combos in NBA history (Shaq and Kobe) never envisioned he'd be in the middle of such a dangerous war.

“Can you imagine?” Medvedenko said. “You’re just sitting at a checkpoint and you see a big f***ing rocket just fly over you?” he told The Athletic.

Although fighting seems to have quieted down in Kyiv (at least for the time being) where Slava spends a majority of time ... the near 7-footer is turning his attention to relief efforts for those who've been affected.

73-year-old Ric Flair is returning to the ring as a wrestler for the last time -- just years after cheating death following a medical emergency in 2019 -- something Nature Boy tells us wouldn't be happening if he wasn't cleared by his doctor.

"I don't have any aches or pains. I know I've had the health issues, but I asked 40 different doctors, and I decided I'm only gonna listen to one. Not necessarily the one that was gonna give me the right answer, but that I felt the most comfortable with," Naitch told Babcock and Mojo on the "TMZ Sports" TV show (weekdays on FS1).

Ric says the physician gave him a clean bill of health, paving the way for him to return to the ring on July 31 in Nashville, TN ... under Jim Crockett Promotions.

Naitch and his team are still looking for an opponent ... something they expect to be squared away over the next few days.

Question is, why is the 16x world champ -- an immortal figure in the sport -- wrestling again?

Ric tells us he just wasn't happy with his last few performances ... and knows he can be better.

"I couldn't stand the last couple of matches I had. Couldn't stand the last year I had," Flair, who last wrestled against Sting in 2011, told us.

Flair says he's been training with Rob MacIntyre from John Cena's gym (as well as with Jay Lethal) ... and the fitness guru has been pushing him hard.

"I needed someone to motivate me. And, what motivates me is doing something I like to do, and that's wrestle."

Nature Boy admits he'll never be the exact guy he was in his 30s, 40s, and 50s, but he'll be pretty damn close.

"I'll never run at 100% again. But, I'll be running at 80, 85%."

And, let's face it ... just wrestling into your 70s is pretty damn impressive. Factor in decades of wrecking your body in the ring, a plane crash in 1975, and a near-death medical emergency in 2019, and it's nothing short of incredible that Naitch is about to kick ass in the ring.

Woooooooooo!!

We also talked to Ric and Wendy Barlow about her humanitarian trip to Ukraine.

It's maybe the most incredible gaffe of the year -- and that's saying something -- former President George W. Bush tried to take aim at Vladimir Putin, and it boomeranged right back on him.

W. was speaking at SMU's George W. Bush Institute when he groused about Putin's invasion of Ukraine ... he was trying to say the war was the brainchild of a tyrant who brazenly invaded a neighboring country without any justification. But, here's how it came out ... "Political opponents are imprisoned or otherwise eliminated from participating in the electoral process. The result is an absence of checks and balances in Russia and the decision of one man to launch a wholly unjustified and brutal invasion of Iraq."

Well, he quickly corrected himself, saying "I mean of Ukraine," and then just shrugged.

As you know, Bush launched a U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003 on the pretext Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction ... there were no such weapons but lots of destruction in the wake of U.S. aggression.

Now check this out ... if you listen closely, after Bush corrects himself, he says, "Iraq too." That's an incredible statement, because that puts him in the seat of the aggressor without justification.

And then, he gets a laugh by saying, "75" -- his age.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver is assisting the WNBA in its efforts to get Brittney Griner home -- revealing on Tuesday he's working with the White House and even hostage negotiators to get her out of custody in Russia.

Silver said before the NBA Draft Lottery in Chicago that he's "working side-by-side" with WNBA commish Cathy Engelbert, who's made bringing Griner back to the U.S. a top priority.

"The league -- and by that, both the WNBA and its brother league, the NBA -- we have a huge responsibility to Brittney Griner as one of our players," Silver said.

"Cathy Engelbert, the commissioner of the WNBA, is on this issue every single day. I'm working side-by-side with her."

Silver says both leagues have gone above and beyond for the Phoenix Mercury star ... getting "in touch with the White House, the State Department, hostage negotiators -- at every level of government and also through the private sector as well."

"Our No. 1 priority is her health and safety and making sure that she gets out of Russia," Silver added.

Griner has been in custody in Russia since February after she was allegedly found with hash oil in her luggage at a Moscow airport.

The 31-year-old was denied house arrest by a judge last week and will be forced to stay in jail for at least another 30 days.

Sean McVay's fiancée has taken her disdain for Vladimir Putin to her bathroom ... revealing she just recently added some Putin toilet paper to her house.

Veronika Khomyn, who's been dating McVay -- the L.A. Rams head coach -- for years, showed off the new bath tissue on her social media page on Sunday evening.

The T.P. in her crib now has Putin's face all over it ... and Veronika insinuated there might be more than just one roll -- captioning the photo, "Home accents," with a poop emoji.

Of course, Veronika is from Ukraine and has been one of Putin's biggest detractors since Russia invaded the country in February.

Khomyn initially called the first hours of the conflict "the hardest day I've ever experienced." She and McVay later took the stage at the Critics' Choice Awards in March to pan Putin for starting the war, and praise Ukrainians for their resiliency.

"I proudly stand with my fellow Ukrainians and I admire their strength," Khomyn said at the awards show with McVay by her side. "They have faced unimaginable adversity with such profound grace and bravery, their fight and the way they have united the world is truly inspiring."

"There is no place in our world for this kind of violence and our prayers go out to all the lives that have been lost."

An incredibly rare baseball signed by Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky just sold at auction ... and a portion of the proceeds are going to a relief fund for the country.

The winning bid for the autographed baseball came in at $50,103 ... according to Boston-based RR Auction, which will be donating their cut of more than $15k to relief efforts in Zelensky's war-torn country.

The sale price is higher than expected ... remember, the ball was projected to go for $15k, and now that's the figure that's being donated.

Zelensky signed his last name on the baseball in two different languages ... Ukrainian cursive and English print ... with his signature underneath an MLB logo.

The ball comes with a letter signed by Volodymyr Yelchenko, Ukraine's Ambassador to the United Nations in September 2019, when Zelensky left his John Hancock during a visit to New York.

Randy L. Kaplan, a government affairs specialist in the Big Apple, got the ball as a gift from Yelchenko ... and he's been collecting signed Major League baseballs from world leaders and heads of state dating all the way back to 1996 with Bill Clinton.

We're told there were 35 bids entered and the buyer wishes to remain anonymous.

Here's a sign that the tide might be turning in Ukraine -- Bono, First Lady Jill Biden and even Prime Minister Justin Trudeau paid a visit this weekend ... a very pleasant surprise.

The trio don't appear to have traveled together, but they were all on hand Saturday and Sunday in different parts of the war-torn country to lift spirits for Mother's Day ... albeit through different means.

The U2 frontman, for example, did an impromptu performance down in a Kyiv subway station alongside The Edge -- singing to a relatively small crowd that had gathered ... but blowing their minds, nonetheless. He even did a duet with Ukrainian singer Taras Topolia!

As cool as that was ... it was Dr. Biden's visit that might've been the most meaningful. She met with President Zelensky's wife, Olena Zelenska, at a school in Uzhhorod ... marking the first time the Ukrainian FL has been in public since February. She's been in hiding.

The visit was unannounced, which made this all the more special. She'd been meeting with refugees earlier in the week in different parts of Europe -- but nobody expected her to drop into the actual country itself ... and yet, here she was giving flowers to Mrs. Zelenska.

Finally, there was Canada's Commander in Chief himself ... PM Trudeau was in Irpin and Kyiv taking in the destruction and devastation -- and even met with Zelensky himself.

Like we said ... the fact these world leaders are there on the ground signals that things might be finally settling down. There's no way they'd send Trudeau or Biden if their respective countries' intelligence thought there was any chance they'd be in danger -- so a good sign.

Angelina Jolie went to Ukraine to see the devastation for herself ... and she's getting major props from Senator Kirsten Gillibrand.

The New York senator said she admires Angie for heading over to the city of Lviv this weekend, where she was chit-chatting with the locals and visiting children in hospitals nearby. It's near the border of Poland, and has largely avoided Russian forces so far.

Gillibrand says she knows AJ does humanitarian work with the UN -- so she thinks it's great that she's putting that hat on in the most crucial of times. As she tells us ... if she feels it's necessary to be over there right now, despite the danger, more power to her.

Now, Angelina's team and reps for the UN have noted she is NOT there on behalf of the intergovernmental org this time around ... but was simply on the ground in her own capacity to bear witness to what was going on.

Volodymyr Zelensky literally left his mark on America's pastime ... the world leader autographed a baseball that's up for auction, and the sale will help relief efforts in Ukraine.

The Ukrainian President signed his last name on the baseball in two different languages ... Ukrainian cursive and English print ... with his signature right below a Major League Baseball logo.

Zelensky left his John Hancock on the ball back in September 2019, during a visit to New York. The ball comes with a letter signed by Volodymyr Yelchenko, Ukraine's Ambassador to the United Nations at the time.

The baseball is going up for sale through RR Auction ... where it's expected to fetch at least $15,000.

Randy L. Kaplan, a government affairs specialist in New York, got the ball as a gift from Yelchenko ... Randy's been collecting signed Major League baseballs from world leaders and heads of state since 1996, starting with Bill Clinton.

The auction house says the ball is in "very fine" condition and Kaplan plans to donate a portion of proceeds from the sale to a Ukrainian relief fund ... RR says they will donate their cut to the same fund.

Novak Djokovic is condemning the decision to ban Russian and Belarusian tennis players from competing at Wimbledon due to the war in Ukraine ... calling the move flat out "crazy."

The Serbian tennis star spoke out against Wimbledon's decision to prevent tennis athletes from Russia and Belarus (a strong ally of Russia) from playing in the high-profile tournament on Wednesday ... saying it was the wrong move.

"I will always condemn war," Djokovic said. "I will never support war, being myself a child of war. I know how much emotional trauma it leaves. In Serbia, we all know what happened in 1999. In the Balkans, we have had many wars in recent history."

"However, I cannot support the decision of Wimbledon. I think it is crazy," he added.

The world's #1-ranked tennis player went on to say, "When politics interfere with sport, the result is not good."

As we previously reported, the All England Club dropped the bombshell news saying it was their responsibility to play their part in limiting Russia's global influence ... electing to keep Russian and Belarusian players from competing.

"In the circumstances of such unjustified and unprecedented military aggression, it would be unacceptable for the Russian regime to derive any benefits from the involvement of Russian or Belarusian players with The Championships," the official statement read.

"It is, therefore, our intention, with deep regret, to decline entries from Russian and Belarusian players to The Championships 2022."

It's been nearly two months since Russia, led by President Vladimir Putin, violently launched an aggressive war against Ukraine.

As the war between Russia and Ukraine continues to rage on, Russian tennis players will be banned from this year's Wimbledon tournament ... arguably the biggest, most important tennis tourney in the world.

The story was first reported by Sportico Tuesday morning ... and The All England Club -- who runs the club which hosts Wimbledon -- later released a statement explaining the move.

"Given the profile of The Championships in the United Kingdom and around the world, it is our responsibility to play our part in the widespread efforts of Government, industry, sporting and creative institutions to limit Russia's global influence through the strongest means possible," TAEC announced.

"In the circumstances of such unjustified and unprecedented military aggression, it would be unacceptable for the Russian regime to derive any benefits from the involvement of Russian or Belarusian players with The Championships. It is, therefore, our intention, with deep regret, to decline entries from Russian and Belarusian players to The Championships 2022."

Of course, Russia is in the midst of a brutal invasion of Ukraine ... and has routinely, without mercy, shelled civilian populations over the 50+ day war.

Belarus -- a strong ally of Russia -- is presumably banned because of the country's involvement in the war. They've acted as a jumping-off point for Russian forces ... as Belarus shares a border with Ukraine.

Many of the West's sanctions have also been aimed at Belarus.

Wimbledon kicks off on June 27 ... and goes through July 10.

The ban is bad news for tennis star Daniil Medvedev, the current No.2 ranked men's tennis player in the world, who won't be allowed to compete.

One of Medvedev's contemporaries, Andrey Rublev, who's also from Russia, will be banned from competing at Wimbledon as well.

You'll recall, Rublev famously wrote, "No More War Please," after advancing to the Final at the Dubai Championships in February.

A Russian warship that underwent a Ukrainian missile strike can now be seen on video going down -- and it seems clear ... way more passengers died than the Kremlin's letting on.

The flagship, dubbed Moskva, sank last week somewhere in the Black Sea off the coast of Odesa -- but it was somewhat unclear how exactly the massive vessel ended up going down ... at least if you were listening to how Putin and co. were explaining it.

According to Russian forces, there was an ammunition fire that broke out onboard -- and that, they say, is what led to the ship heading underwater ... but Ukraine has said differently from the beginning, and now these images seem to confirm their account.

Ukrainian officials had said they blew the damn thing up with a couple of their missiles -- this as the Russian army started to encroach from the sea in their latest effort to bombard their neighboring country.

It would appear their efforts failed miserably ... because the Moskva -- which was Russia's largest warship to be deployed against Ukraine to date -- clearly lost a good handful of the 500 or so crew members that are reported to have been manning it at the time.