TMZ Sports - Page 8

The former WWE employee accusing Vince McMahon of sexual assault and sex trafficking has agreed to hold off on her lawsuit at the request of the U.S. government ... as the feds conduct its own investigation into the former wrestling mogul.

Janel Grant filed the bombshell suit against McMahon and former WWE exec. John Laurinaitis back in January ... claiming she was coerced into sex acts to elevate her career within the company, among other disturbing allegations.

As it turns out, the government is already doing its own probe into the matter ... and asked Grant to put a pause on her suit to avoid any potential interference, which she agreed to do.

NY Giants star Darren Waller -- who's also a musician -- is opening up on his love life, in song form, dropping a new track about failed past relationships just months after his ex, WNBA star Kelsey Plum filed for divorce.

The latest single is titled "Who Knew (Her Perspective)" ... and Waller said he wrote it from the viewpoint of a woman trying to love him.

"I’ve struggled with intimacy in romantic relationships my whole life, and I recognize the toll it has taken on the lovers I’ve been close to," the 31-year-old said on Thursday.

A golfer at the U.S. Women's Open hit a birdie on Thursday ... but not one she was hoping for -- 'cause a winged creature is now dead after it got absolutely rocked by a ball.

The sad moment went down on the 12th hole at Lancaster Country Club ... when cameras captured the participant's approach shot.

As the ball came down from the sky, a bird was just chilling on the green ... and unfortunately, it was the worst case of being at the wrong place at the wrong time.

Brooks Koepka's Sports Illustrated Swimsuit model wife, Jena Sims, is proving she's serious about her bikinis ... rocking a two-piece while showing off her golf swing!!

The Koepkas went on a luxurious getaway to the Bahamas recently ... and thankfully, they provided a ton of content to allow their followers to live vicariously through them.

Naturally, tiny bathing suits were part of the dress code -- even on the course, where Sims hit some balls as Brooks watched nearby.

The United States Women's National Team got a Prime Time surprise as they prep for the 2024 Summer Olympics ... a personal visit from NFL legend Deion Sanders!

The meet-up happened on Wednesday at the University of Colorado ... as America's best soccer players prep for the Games in Paris.

Sanders -- entering his 2nd year as head football coach of the Buffaloes -- wanted to show the ladies some love while they were on campus ... so he showed up to surprise them and they were stoked!

PSA, prank Neymar at your own risk!

The soccer superstar literally slashed the tires of his teammate's car ... all after a harmless little prank.

Here's the deal ... Al-Hilal's left-back Renan Lodi was in good spirits after the team was named the Saudi Professional League champion this week, so he decided to have a little fun at Neymar's (he's recovering from an injury) expense.

On Wednesday, Lodi got a hold of Neymar's shoes and tied them together at the Al-Hilal training facility ... likely never thinking revenge would be so swift and severe -- and costly!

O.J. Simpson avoided paying Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman's families millions when he was alive -- and now, from beyond the grave, he might be dodging them again ... TMZ has learned.

While Malcolm LaVergne -- O.J.'s longtime lawyer and now executor of his estate -- made it clear he intended to talk money with Nicole and Ron's respective loved ones ... Malcom says an unforeseen tax debt is creating a new hurdle.

Malcolm tells TMZ ... the state of California has a massive tax lien against Simpson's estate for $572,402.69 -- which he says could derail his plan to settle part of the $33.5 million judgment O.J. owed his victims' families after the 1997 wrongful death lawsuit.

Darryl Strawberry's back to feeling 100 percent --- and he couldn't be happier about it ... revealing to TMZ Sports this week he nearly died from the heart attack he suffered in March.

The Mets legend opened up to us about his medical scare while out in NYC ... and he said things got so bad with his heart at the time of the emergency, doctors couldn't believe he survived.

"My heart was pumping at 40 percent," said Strawberry, who described the heart attack as a "massive" one. "So, there was a lot going on. There was not a lot of blood flowing through my heart at that particular time."

We're just getting over the hump in the week, but we're still rolling with some fire TV takes.

Let's start out on "TMZ Live" ... where Harvey and Charles discussed the latest development in the Diddy saga -- namely, the fact that a grand jury has been convened in the ongoing federal investigation ... and that prosecutors are apparently bringing in witnesses to talk.

Bam Margera's all smiles after tying the knot with Dannii Marie Tuesday -- but the marriage is raising the eyebrows of his ex Nikki Boyd, who's got a lot of questions about the timing.

Nikki tells TMZ ... “Whatever makes him happy. I’m happy for him. But it was curious timing, considering that he was supposed to be in court for our trial today."

Despite his big day, our Bam sources say he managed to fulfill his legal obligations by hopping on a Zoom link to attend the trial during his reception.

Jason and Kylie Kelce are not only welcome in Margate, NJ ... but they've also been invited to have a free meal on the mayor's dime -- this after an out-of-control fan threatened the couple wouldn't be allowed inside town limits after turning down a photo request!

Mayor Michael Collins hit up X on Wednesday to address the controversy just hours after the uncomfortable interaction went viral online ... where a woman was seen arguing with the Kelces, all because Jason and Kylie wanted to enjoy a night out without interruption.

"On behalf of the City of Margate, I'd like to formally apologize to Jason & Kylie Kelce for the experience they had in Margate City over the holiday weekend," Collins wrote.

The comeback for three-time Olympic gold medalist Gabby Douglas has come to an end for now -- the star gymnast suffered an injury that has forced her to back out of the U.S. championships -- making her ineligible for the 2024 Games in Paris.

The 28-year-old hurt her ankle during training for this weekend's event in Fort Worth, Texas ... and the ailment was severe enough to keep her sidelined.

The injury will cost her a spot on the five-person team for the Olympics this summer ... which would have been her first since the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games.

UFC star Sean Strickland just went off on Tom Brady ... calling the NFL legend a "p***y" in a crass rant filled with all kinds of homophobic and misogynistic language.

The former middleweight champion didn't hold back when he was asked for his thoughts on Brady's "The Greatest Roast of All Time: Tom Brady" at UFC 302 media day earlier Wednesday ... ripping the ex-Patriots quarterback for nearly a minute.

The fighter's beef with TB12 appeared to be over the way the former signal-caller expressed regret over some of the jokes about Gisele Bündchen and their family.

11:34 AM PT -- Scottie Scheffler is speaking out following the dropped charges ... saying he has no ill will toward the officer and will look to move past the incident.

"Police officers have a difficult job and I hold them in high regard," Scheffler said. "This was a severe miscommunication in a chaotic situation."

"I appreciate the support during the past two weeks and want to again encourage everyone to remember the real tragedy of May 17. My thoughts and prayers continue to be with John Mills and his family, and I hope to personally offer my condolences now that the case is over. May John rest in peace."

Scottie Scheffler can breathe easy once more ... the criminal charges he was facing in his assault case have just been dropped.

Jefferson County prosecutors filed a motion in court Wednesday afternoon to dismiss the case against the world's best golfer -- and a judge granted it without issue.

In explaining why they wanted to move on from the case, officials said they simply did not have enough evidence to go forward. In fact, they said Scheffler's characterization of the incident as a huge misunderstanding was actually "corroborated" by the evidence they had collected.

Nicole Brown Simpson made some troubling claims against O.J. Simpson before her death ... so says Faye Resnick, who claims O.J. would lurk in bushes to keep an eye on her.

Faye -- who was a close confidant of Nicole's before her murder -- shed light on NBS and O.J.'s dynamic following their split in a sneak peek from Lifetime's docuseries, "The Life and Murder of Nicole Brown Simpson" ... saying her late friend was scared of the NFL star.

As FR puts it ... O.J. had allegedly taken to stalking Nicole in the aftermath of their breakup -- with the American athlete even creeping on her from the bushes at one point.

Jason and Kylie Kelce's run-in with a rude fan didn't ruin their entire trip to the Jersey Shore ... 'cause the Philadelphia Eagles legend had nothing but great things to say about their weekend getaway.

The recently retired NFL center discussed his time in Sea Isle City on the latest episode of the "New Heights" podcast with his brother, Travis ... but anyone looking to get Jason's take on the drama they encountered during a date night was left unfulfilled.

As we previously reported, Kylie unloaded on a woman who got upset over a denied photo opportunity ... and many witnesses claimed the Kelces were nothing but polite leading up to the altercation -- but the lady wasn't having it.