Health

The woman who was allegedly punched by star boxer Sergey Kovalev in a 2018 attack says she needed a plate and 4 screws in her neck to fix the damage he caused ... and she says she's still in pain.

Jamie Frontz claims she was socked in the face by the 36-year-old Russian after she denied his sexual advances after the two met at the opening of a boxing gym in Big Bear, Calif. in June '18.

In a conversation with TMZ Sports ... she described how the alleged assault went down -- and it's graphic.

According to Frontz ... she and Kovalev were making out on a couch in her rented cabin when she began to feel like the boxer was getting too aggressive -- so she started to pull away.

That's when she says her dog intervened, jumping in between the two ... and "Krusher" shoved the animal to the ground. Frontz says when she screamed for Kovalev to leave immediately after, he grew even angrier, and KICKED the dog in the chest.

That's when she said Kovalev became violent toward her ... punching her with a closed fist in her face.

"When he punched me, my nose exploded," Frontz says. "Blood went everywhere. There was blood all over the cabin. All over the walls. All over the carpet. All over everything."

Toccara Jones is rushing to Lizzo's defense against an army of body-shaming haters ... she says critics are just insecure, and yet she's calling Jillian Michaels a "heifer."

The ex-"America's Next Top Model" contestant thinks it's crazy body shaming is still a thing in 2020, and she's convinced the hate is just a manifestation of people's lack of confidence in their own bodies.

As you know ... Jillian ignited a huge controversy when she said folks should celebrate Lizzo's music and not her weight. The fitness guru believes Lizzo could be in for serious health issues down the line.

Toccara thinks Jillian's comments are grossly misguided ... she says it's not about weight or body mass because those who don't tip a scale can also run into health problems. Toccara tries to hold her tongue, but she just can't and takes a shot at Jillian.

Bottom line for Toccara ... body shaming oughta be a relic of the past, along with antiquated notions of who is and isn't healthy.

Even though Luke Kuechly only played 8 NFL seasons, his old teammate says he's a shoo-in for the Hall of Fame ... 'cause Mike Tolbert says the linebacker did more than enough to prove he's worthy.

28-year-old Kuechly abruptly put an end to his successful career earlier this week ... saying it was time to put the game behind him.

There's been speculation that health had something to do with it, but Tolbert tells us regardless of the reason, he's proud Luke knew it was time to walk away.

"He's my guy, I love him to death," Tolbert tells TMZ Sports. "I'm happy for him. There's not a lot of guys that can say they walked away from the game the way they wanted to."

Luke was arguably the best linebacker in the league ever since entering the NFL way back in 2012 as a first-round pick out of Boston College.

We asked Tolbert -- who played with the Panthers from 2012-2016 -- if he thought Kuechly could take his talents to the sidelines as a coach ... and he says it would be a natural fit.

"I don't think there's anybody better. He's the smartest football player I've ever been around. He and Phillip Rivers I'd put 1 and 2."

Kuechly was a stud on the field with Carolina ... making 7 Pro Bowls and earning 5 first-team All-Pro honors. He was the NFL's defensive player of the year in 2013 and the defensive rookie of the year in 2012.

"I think Luke has that perfect mindset. He's not married, he doesn't have any kids. He can afford to spend those 20-22 hour days at the facility preparing. "

Dr. Oz is firing back at Mark Wahlberg's cardiac arrest crack -- and as it turns out, the doc's actually got some jokes of his own ... plus nifty visual aides.

DO took to Instagram Saturday to respond to Mark's own video from a few days ago, where he accepted Oz's no-breakfast/one-legged push-up challenge and then joked the guy would probably need a defibrillator by the time Marky Mark was done with him in the gym.

Well, Dr. Oz seems to have one-upped him -- rocking real scrubs and showing off an actual defibrillator in what looks to be a real hospital ... not to mention giving a demonstration.

Oz even takes some shots at MW, saying he's probably used a fake defibrillator in front of the camera -- but in the real world, only one of 'em knows how to use it ... and it ain't Mark. He goes on to call out Mark's "full stomach" and show muscles ... doubting they work as advertised. It's funny, Dr. Oz is confident Mark will be the one passing out.

This is just the latest sling in what's become the weirdest/most awesome celeb feud of the new year. That said, we're ready to see some action here ... 'cause talk is cheap.

Taylor Swift likes her workouts solo -- as in she doesn't just book a trainer, she books a gym -- sorry Justin Bieber.

Here's the deal ... Justin was at Dogpound Gym in West Hollywood with a bunch of people, but then Taylor and her crew rolled up.

We're told everyone -- including JB was asked to get the heck out of the gym -- because Taylor had an appointment. Justin's security team was approached and asked to leave, but JB's team held firm and said he was going to finish his workout before taking off.

We're told Justin, who did not have an appointment, finished -- although he was mostly goofing around and dancing -- and left ... but he had no idea it was Taylor who had requested the gym be cleared. Once he left, everyone who remained was asked to leave.

One source connected to the gym tells us Taylor did indeed have an appointment with a trainer in the gym ... and the appointment was to train alone. Justin just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

JB gave fans a preview of his routine that day, spending quite a bit of time dancing in front of mirrors to his new single, "Yummy."

Chris Long says he's proud of Luke Kuechly for hanging up his cleats early ... telling TMZ Sports the NFL is "a dangerous game."

"People got families," the former Eagles and Patriots Super Bowl champ says. "Good for him."

Kuechly, at just 28 years old, announced his retirement earlier this week ... and a lot of people are questioning whether it was the right call given what he's got left in the tank.

But, when we got Long out in D.C., he told us he's all for the move ... saying Kuechly -- who's battled head injuries throughout his career -- really has no reason to keep putting his body in jeopardy.

"I think guys are more financially capable to make that decision now," Long says.

"Where back in the day, you'd have to play 15 years to take care of your family, you don't have to do that anymore."

Here it is ... Conor McGregor and Donald "Cowboy" Cerrone stripping down and weighing in for their main event fight at UFC 246 -- and good news, they both made weight!

Conor and Cowboy both hit 170 on the dot -- perfect weight for their welterweight matchup Saturday night at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

The last time McGregor fought, he only weighed 155 to fight Khabib Nurmagomedov for the UFC lightweight title.

But now, he's moved up in weight and he looks pretty good -- big, strong and UFC doctors say he's in the best shape of his MMA career.

As for Cowboy, DON'T SLEEP ON THAT GUY -- Cerrone holds the UFC record for most victories, most finishes and most fight bonuses!

Both fighters will next attend the UFC ceremonial weigh-in -- which goes down later Friday in front of thousands of fans. It's usually a chaotic scene. We'll have the highlights for you right here.

The Wiggles star Greg Page is in serious but stable condition after going into cardiac arrest and collapsing while onstage.

Page and his comrades appeared to be near the end of their fire relief concert in Sydney, Australia Friday and as they began exiting the stage you can clearly see Page collapse. Murray Cook (the red Wiggle) then addressed the crowd and said the band couldn't continue -- possibly for an encore -- because Page wasn't feeling well.

The 48-year-old Aussie was immediately rushed to the hospital. The band later said, "As has been reported, our friend Greg Page suffered a cardiac arrest at the end of the bushfire relief performance and was taken to hospital."

The statement continued, "He has had a procedure and is now recovering in hospital. We appreciate your kind messages and concern."

Therese Dion -- mother of international superstar Celine Dion -- has died after months of battling serious health issues.

Celine's mom, who was known affectionately in Canada as "Maman Dion," reportedly passed late Thursday surrounded by her family and friends. Therese's eldest child, Claudette Dion, revealed last year that her mother had been dealing with significant health problems ... including memory loss and vision and hearing impairment.

The Dion matriarch had a whopping 14 children, who she raised with her husband, Adhemar, in Charlemagne, northeast of Montreal. Adhemar died in 2003.

Delta Airlines just got hit with a lawsuit because one of its jets allegedly dumped fuel on an L.A. elementary school.

Video showed Delta flight 89, a Boeing 777 bound for China, turning back to LAX Tuesday to make an emergency landing, and spewing fuel as it went in preparation for landing.

Unfortunately, that fuel ended up dousing children at Park Avenue Elementary in the city of Cudahy, CA.

Four teachers at the school have hired Gloria Allred to take on Delta. In the suit, obtained by TMZ, they say the pilot was asked by air traffic control if there was a need to dump fuel before landing ... and the pilot said no.

The suit alleges the pilot dumped the fuel without notifying the control tower ... and the big problem is ... it was done at an altitude of about 2,000 feet. According to docs, that's simply too low to allow the fuel to evaporate before it reaches the ground -- it should be done at 5,000 feet or higher.

In the suit, the teachers say their clothes, flesh and eyes were coated in jet fuel -- and it also got into their mouths. They say they had trouble breathing and needed medical treatment.

Demi Lovato's comeback includes a Grammys performance, a coveted Super Bowl gig ... and a full-length studio album to be released in the first half of 2020.

TMZ's learned the singer's still working on the tracks -- which will be the first new music she's put out since she nearly died from an overdose -- but plans to drop them by summer.

We're told the new album will touch on her OD in July 2018, her time in rehab, her sobriety and the journey/struggle to get there.

Our Demi sources say a tour coinciding with the album is also very possible, but the logistics have yet to be locked down.

It's been a big week for Demi -- before we got word of the new album, it was announced she'd be performing at the Grammys on January 26 ... and singing the National Anthem at Super Bowl LIV in February.

Rebel Wilson's gonna make it hard for "Pitch Perfect 4" (y'know it's gonna happen) producers to cast her as Fat Amy again, because she's shedding some serious weight.

The "Cats" star -- sorry, we had to mention that -- has been focused on her health and weight-loss for awhile now, and these new images of her putting in work at the gym ... show the progress is real in 2020.

Rebel's been sharing her progress for the last 10 months, and even credits the filming of "Cats" for aiding her weight loss. So, there IS a silver lining to that disaster.

On January 2 she put herself all the way out there, saying ... "Okay so for me 2020 is going to be called “The Year of Health.” Rebel vowed to get exercise and avoid sugar and junk food and added, "Who’s with me in making some positive changes this year?"

Looks like Wilson's sticking to her plan so far, and her “transformation trainer,” Jono Castano, says she's been doing it 7 days a week.

Demi Lovato will sing the National Anthem at Super Bowl LIV in February -- one of her first live performances since suffering an overdose back in 2018.

Lovato has serious experience singing the Anthem at major sporting events -- she had the honors at the big Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor fight back in 2017.

But, her life hit some speed bumps since then and she was hospitalized in July 2018 after nearly dying from an overdose likely caused by Oxy laced with Fentanyl.

Before that Lovato had admitted falling off the wagon after nearly 6 years of sobriety.

Now, Lovato appears healthy and sober and ready to make a public comeback -- and it doesn't get much bigger than the Super Bowl!!!

FYI, if you're one of those degenerate gamblers who likes to bet on the over/under for length of the National Anthem performance ... here's some advice -- Demi's rendition at the Conor vs. Floyd fight went almost 2 minutes and 15 seconds ... so, don't bet on short!

Someone's leaving in an ambulance, and Mark Wahlberg is positive it'll be Dr. Oz ... IF the good doc follows through with his push-up challenge ... to settle the great breakfast debate once and for all.

It all started out kinda funny, but Mark's no longer laughing, saying to Oz, "We got beef now. You don't want this smoke" -- making it clear he's down for whatever physical competition Oz wants.

You'll recall ... Oz threw down the gauntlet earlier this week when he told us he'd crush Marky Mark in a one-legged push-up contest ... all because Mark disagreed with Oz's controversial break-xit remark -- that we should do away with breakfast altogether!!

Careful what you ask for, Oz, 'cause Mark's dead serious -- "You could do your little 20 push-ups with one leg, your assisted pull-up. I'm telling you you'll need a defibrillator when I'm done with you!"

Stan Kirsch -- better known as Richie Ryan on the original "Highlander" TV series -- was found dead in his L.A. home.

Law enforcement sources confirm Stan's wife, Kristyn Green, found the actor hanging Saturday afternoon in their bathroom. Paramedics responded, but we're told he was pronounced dead at the scene.

Stan had tons of acting credits, appearing on shows like "JAG," "General Hospital" and "Friends" ... in addition to his 6 seasons on "Highlander" in the mid-90s. However, he was also a renowned acting coach in Los Angeles.

A tribute to Stan on the show's official Facebook page said, "Without Stan Kirsch, Highlander: The Series would have been far less. He brought a sense of humor, kindness and youthful enthusiasm to the character of Richie Ryan for six seasons."

"Glee" star Dot Jones is lucky to be alive ... thanks to her quick-thinking wife, Bridgett, who rushed her to the same doctor who also once saved her life.

Dot tells TMZ ... she recently underwent emergency heart surgery after experiencing a severe burning sensation in her chest area that proved to be a much more serious condition than doctors initially figured.

We're told Dot saw multiple doctors in December after experiencing the burning feeling. She was ultimately diagnosed with bronchial spasms and asthma. But, not long after New Year's, Dot's experience grew exponentially worse while taking down her Christmas decorations.

We're told Bridgett rushed Dot to the hospital, where the same cardiologist who treated and saved Bridgett's life in 2017 following a stroke discovered Dot had what's called a widowmaker heart attack. The name says it all -- they're typically fatal. Dot's condition was pretty severe, with one of her arteries being 99% blocked.