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Becker & Roy qualify for semi-finals in Birmingham

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Sophie Becker and Lauren Roy have both advanced to the semi-finals of their respective events at the European Championships in Birmingham.

Sophie Becker qualified for the women’s 400m semi-finals at the Alexander Stadium when she became the first of the Irish athletes in action on Wednesday morning.

Competing in Round 1 Heat 1 of the women’s 400m, the 29-year-old ran a season’s best time of 52.28 seconds in finishing third.

With the 13 fastest qualifiers across all heats progressing to the semi-finals, the European silver medallist from the women’s 4 x 400m relay in Rome in 2024 had to wait until the conclusion of heats to see if she would qualify for Thursday’s semi-finals.

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After the second heat, Becker was in seventh place, and following the running of heat three, she was in 13th position, with 13 qualifiers going forward to tomorrow’s semi-finals at 12.45pm.

Lauren Roy, who competed in the 100m heats on Monday, was back in action on Wednesday morning when taking to the start line for heat 1 of the women’s 200m.

Running in lane 9, Roy finished third in a time of 23.20 seconds, outside of her season’s best of 22.79 seconds which she ran in Texas in May.

With 12 athletes qualifying from the three heats, Roy finished sixth overall, and will now join Rhasidat Adeleke, who received a bye, in tonight’s semi-finals which will get underway at 8.20pm.

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Fabien Barthez to coach France’s goalkeepers under former teammate Zidane

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World Cup-winning goalkeeper Fabien Barthez will join the staff of new France head coach Zinedine Zidane, the French Football Federation (FFF) announced Thursday.

The 55-year-old, who was Zidane’s teammate when France won the 1998 World Cup on home soil, will be responsible for the national team’s goalkeepers.

Watch moreNew era for France as Zidane takes charge of national team

Barthez, who played for Toulouse, Monaco, Marseille and Manchester United, had previously worked as a consultant for the French national team under coaches Raymond Domenech and Laurent Blanc, but played no role during Didier Deschamps‘ 14-year tenure.

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He was briefly part of the Toulouse coaching staff from 2020 to 2021.

The FFF also announced several other appointments to the France coaching staff.

Among them are assistant coaches David Bettoni and Hamidou Msaidie, two close associates of Zidane who worked alongside him during his two spells in charge of Real Madrid.

Another recruit, Grégory Dupont, appointed “Strategy and Performance Adviser” also worked with Zidane at Madrid.

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Appointed on July 28 to succeed his former teammate Deschamps after France lost in the World Cup semi-finals, 54-year-old Zidane will take charge of his first France training camp in September.

France’s first game under his guidance will be a Nations League match away to Turkey on September 25.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP)

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Braxton Ashcraft, Pirates overwhelm Marlins with 13-1 rout

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Aug 13, 2026; Miami, Florida, USA;  Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Braxton Ashcraft (35) throws against the Miami Marlins in the first inning at loanDepot Park. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn ImagesAug 13, 2026; Miami, Florida, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Braxton Ashcraft (35) throws against the Miami Marlins in the first inning at loanDepot Park. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn Images

Braxton Ashcraft pitched a complete game and struck out 10 batters as the Pirates ended Miami’s four-game winning streak by defeating the host Marlins 13-1 on Thursday afternoon.

Owen Caissie spoiled Ashcraft’s attempt at a shutout by homering to lead off the ninth inning.

Still, other than the homer, Ashcraft (12-5) did not allow a runner past first base. He surrendered just three hits and one walk and was aided by his defense, as the Pirates turned three double plays and threw out a runner attempting to steal second base.

It was the longest — and likely the best — outing of Ashcraft’s career, who is in his second year in the majors and his first as a full-time starter.

Pittsburgh’s offense was led by Jared Triolo, Jake Mangum, Rafael Flores Jr. and Jacob Gonzalez.

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Triolo went 3-for-4 with a homer, a walk, three RBIs and three runs scored. Mangum went 3-for-4 with a single, double and triple. He also drove in a run with a hit-by-pitch and scored three times, including once on a balk. Flores slugged a pair of three-run homers, including one off Marlins infielder Javier Sanoja. Gonzalez also homered off Sanoja.

Marlins starter Tyler Phillips (3-6) took the loss despite striking out six batters in 5 1/3 innings. However, he allowed six hits, one walk and four runs.

Pittsburgh opened the scoring in the fifth inning as Mangum got a first-pitch sweeper and drove it 354 feet to right-center. Right fielder Caissie made a diving attempt but came up empty as Mangum earned a triple. Mangum then scored on a balk.

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The next batter, Triolo, got a 1-0 sinker and belted it 395 feet for a homer … but only after it bounced off the glove of center fielder Jakob Marsee for a 2-0 lead.

In the sixth, the Pirates loaded the bases with one out on two singles and a walk. The Pirates then cashed in when Mangum was hit by a pitch on his left foot for an RBI and Triolo made it 5-0 with a two-run ground-ball single through the left side of the infield.

Pittsburgh put the game away in the eighth as Mangum doubled, Triolo walked and Flores hit his first three-run homer.

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–Field Level Media

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JustaMinx claims ExtraEmily was paid $450k to become Twitch’s new Brand Ambassador

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Controversial streamer JustaMinx has streamed more in 2026 (on Twitch) so far than in the entirety of 2025. She’s also been active on social media, and most recently, on August 13, 2026, she spoke about Twitch Ambassador ExtraEmily. For context, Twitch recently named Emily as one of its newest Ambassadors entrusted to represent the platform, foster community engagement, and provide feedback.

JustaMinx suggested that Twitch’s move to make ExtraEmily an ambassador was motivated by fear of Kick’s growth, while also claiming that Emily was paid $450,000 to take up the position:

“twitch is lowkey scared kick are gonna take over lmao. She got paid 450k to be an ambassador btw.”

twitch is lowkey scared kick are gonna take over lmao. She got paid 450k to be an ambassador btw

Notably, this post was shared about a week after Minx called out One True King (OTK) co-founder TipsOut, threatening to release “behind-the-scenes recordings of him” and his organisation that were supposed to be private.

As of this writing, JustaMinx averages about 300 viewers per stream and is primarily active in the Just Chatting category on Twitch. She also streams on Kick where she has about 6,000 followers.


ExtraEmily’s Twitch Ambassador appointment sparks controversy online

The announcement has been controversial, and some streamers and viewers criticized the decision because ExtraEmily has received multiple Twitch suspensions in the past, including bans related to distracted-driving incidents during IRL streams.

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Netizens online reacted, with many questioning Twitch’s decisions:

“At least when she hits someone, it’ll be no question if the victim can sue Twitch,” said @decoyposts.

“Twitch picking a creator who literally got banned for distracted driving to represent their global brand is Peak Twitch Management,” said @FOSTER7864.

“I think she’s a great pick! She represents exactly what twitch is perfectly 😂,” said @REALIcePoseidon.

“The streets aren’t safe with her driving around,” said @its_pickletime.

The announcement about ExtraEmily being a Twitch Ambassador was part of a broader rollout introducing several new ambassadors, including GP_TV, Gh0stArcade, blklght, WhiskeyDing0, Bubbell, Moohoodles, and BurtsBeat.


In other news, Emily has a new show on Hulu called Creator Essentials.