Olympics

Soccer legend Pele will NOT attend Friday's Olympic Opening Ceremony in Brazil due to health issues.

Here's supermodel Adriana Lima carrying the Olympic torch through the streets of Rio Thursday night ... and as far we know, nothing bad happened.

The opening ceremony is set to go down Friday afternoon -- Gisele is rumored to be a part of the show and Pele is expected to light the Olympic cauldron.

They might be studs on the "pro wrestling" circuit ... but even the most talented "real" wrestlers in the WWE would get ROLLED UP by Team USA's olympic wrestling team ... so says Kurt Angle.

Angle would know ... he won a gold medal in freestyle wrestling at the 1996 Olympics.

So, when it comes to hardcore competition -- not even guys like Seth Rollins, Dean Ambrose and Finn Balor can compete with Team USA's Daniel Dennis, Tony Ramos and Tyler Graff.

BTW, we asked Kurt if he would consider another Olympic comeback attempt -- but he shot that down hard saying he's too old and would "get my ass kicked."

#KeepinItReal

What happens when Michael Phelps, Katie Ledecky and Ryan Lochte pack into a car with their Olympic teammates? They break out in song, of course!

Before making the trip to Rio, Team USA cruised around Atlanta and rocked out to some of the biggest songs to date like "Party in The U.S.A" ... which they've obviously rehearsed many times.

Check out the video ... Let's hope they swim better than they can sing.

Al Sharpton says it's downright UN-AMERICAN for the USA Hoops squad to get luxury treatment in Rio ... saying they should show some unity and rough it with the rest of the Olympic athletes.

If you didn't know ... the men and women's hoops teams got HOOKED UP in Brazil ... staying aboard a sick luxury liner while the other USA athletes get the freshman dorm experience in Olympic Village.

We got Sharpton out in NYC and asked about the accommodation inequality ... which he said is not only unfair ... but goes against everything the red, white and blue stands for.

It's worth noting ... the USA men's hoops team hasn't stayed in Olympic Village since the '88 games ... with the crew staying in hotels since the pros brought their celebrity status to the mix in '92.

Still though ... Sharpton's fired up. And that's always fun to see. Check it out.

Is it even fair anymore?

Chad Johnson's 11-year-old daughter Cha'iel just ran away with yet another gold medal in the 800m Jr. Olympic Finals in Houston ... defending her title from a year ago.

Cha'iel crossed the finish line with a time of 2:19:60 at the AAU Junior Olympic Track & Field Championships ... a full 2 seconds faster than the 2nd place finisher and almost 8 seconds faster than her time last year.

But that's not all ... Cha'iel has a chance to go for gold in the 400m on Thursday. She finished with the best time (1:00.35) in the semifinals.

Good luck! Not like she needs it ...

Screw hotels, the Team USA basketball squad is staying on a massive cruise ship during their stint in Brazil ... complete with round the clock security and a bulletproof security wall!!

Both the men's and women's team are staying on a 16,800 ton behemoth called the Silver Cloud -- a luxury liner that features a pool, gym, cigar lounge, bar ... the works!

So ... why?

A rep for Team USA tells TMZ Sports, "Hotel rooms were scarce in Rio, we ended up getting some rooms on the ship for our teams."

"This is not something new, in 2004 we stayed on a ship for the Athens Olympics. The U.S. men’s and women’s basketball teams are not the only guests on the ship, there are others outside the organization."

Interesting note -- some of the rooms were replaced with 7-foot beds to accommodate the massive stars ... so says the Daily Mail.

The only thing left is to cruise to gold medal ...

The Summer Olympics in Rio are less than a week away, but the hottest contest down there is Miss Bumbum 2016 -- and all signs point to a stiff competition.

Kevin Durant and Carmelo Anthony sipped vino and puffed cigars at an Olympics send-off party Monday night in Houston ... oh, and they got super fancy watches worth over TEN GRAND each!!

The guys at Haute Time and Avion tequila threw the party for Melo and KD (DeAndre Jordan was also there) at a Houston mansion last night after Team USA dismantled Nigeria.

The alcohol, smokes, and fancy food (Chicken Chasseur and Sacher Torte) weren't even the best part ... the highlight was the $27k luxury Hublot watches.

Melo got hooked up with a Big Bang Unico Titanium Bracelet (retails for about $17k) ... and Durant a Classic Fusion Titanium King Gold (about $10k).

Team USA's flying to Brazil Tuesday ... before playing China on Saturday.

Behold ... BOLT IS IN BRAZIL!!!

The fastest man EVER landed in Rio Thursday morning -- and greeted the fans with an "I am here" pose.

Bolt was greeted by fans and media -- but didn't say a word ... just gesturing with his hands before being whisked off in a private car.

Bolt's gunning for a "triple-triple" at the 2016 Games -- looking to win gold in all 3 of his events (100m, 200m and 4x100m) for the 3rd Olympics in a row.

But Team USA sprinter Justin Gatlin says he ain't gonna let it happen -- telling "TMZ Sports" he "guarantees" victory over his Olympic rival.

Should be fun!!!

Even the drug dealers in Brazil are catching the Olympic spirit -- so say cops, who just seized a bunch of cocaine packaged in baggies with the Rio 2016 logo!

According to local reports, cops seized 93 baggies of yayo during an operation Monday night -- and found several of the baggies had the Olympic rings ... and a line that read, "Use Away from Children."

How considerate.

Police also say ... agents swooped up 28 bags of crack and some ammunition during the raid.

McKayla Maroney is hoping Drake will make her hotline bling -- telling TMZ Sports she's all about hooking up with the rap superstar on a brand new track.

The ex-Team USA gymnast has moved on from the sport and turned her attention to music -- telling the guys on the "TMZ Sports" TV show (airs Tuesday night on FS1) she's dropping new music in the next few months.

Will there be a special guest verse from a certain Jewish Canadian rapper?

Draymond Green spent some quality time in Vegas with his brand new Golden State teammate, Kevin Durant, over the weekend ... and it was all thanks to Carmelo Anthony.

Of course, the guys also happen to be on Team USA together -- along with DeAndre Jordan, DeMarcus Cousins, DeMar DeRozan, Kyle Lowry -- and 'Melo organized a dinner for the team.

The squad was all in Vegas gearing up for Monday's first official practice (the team's home base is Sin City) -- but got together at the Wynn Sunday night for a fancy welcome dinner hosted by Carmelo and his friends at Haute Time.

We're told hotel owner Steve Wynn couldn't make it -- but sent one of his favorite magicians to entertain the guys. You can see in the pics they all seem to be havin' a good time.

By the way, big smiles on Draymond Green's face the entire evening -- seems he ain't too worried about that whole assault case in Michigan.

Here's the official music video for Katy Perry's new song "Rise" -- which NBC will use as an anthem during the 2016 Olympics coverage.

"This is a song that's been brewing inside me for years, that has finally come to the surface," Perry said.

"I was inspired to finish it now, rather than save it for my next album, because now more than ever, there is a need for our world to unite. I know that together we can rise above the fear -- in our country, and around the world."

2x U.S. Olympic star Jamie Nieto is home from the hospital and walking with some assistance less than 3 months after a NEAR-DEATH injury ... TMZ Sports has learned.

As we previously reported, Nieto landed on his head during a training session on April 23rd ... and suffered MAJOR DAMAGE to his back. He lost feeling in his arms and legs ... and was unable to move.

But only 2 1/2 months after the injury, Nieto's manager, Paul Doyle, says his client has miraculously recovered ... so much that he's been sent home from the hospital ... and is WALKING with a walker.

How'd he bounce back? Intense rehab, Doyle says. "He's been treating recovery like a true Olympian."

Probably never be the same though, right? Wrong. Doyle says Nieto expects he'll be on his feet, walking by himself in no time.

Ex-Olympic sprinter Oscar Pistorius was sentenced to 6 years in prison for the 2013 killing of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp ... after his initial manslaughter conviction was upgraded to murder.

Pistorius admitted he shot and killed Steenkamp in his South Africa home -- claiming he believed she was an intruder.

He was convicted of manslaughter in 2014 and was living under house arrest as part of a 5 year sentence -- but the conviction was overturned and upgraded to murder.

Oscar was facing up to 15 years behind bars -- but the judge felt he only deserved 6 ... partly due to the fact he's shown remorse.

The 29-year-old was taken to prison immediately following Wednesday's hearing. He will be eligible for parole after serving half of his sentence.