The Paralympics often have been an afterthought during an Olympic year, and television coverage reflects that.
During the Beijing Games last August, the disabled sports weren't shown live or even on the same day as the medals were handed out.
Vancouver will be a different story. The consortium covering the 2010 Winter Olympics is giving the Paralympics an Olympic-style showing.
A total of 50 hours of HD programming will come out of the five events, including every second of the Canadian sledge hockey team live.
For Keith Pelley, the president of the consortium, giving the Paralympics full treatment was a must, even if the athletes aren't as well known as those from the able-bodied Games.
"The stories are spectacular," Pelley said. "The athletes -- similar to the able-bodied games -- have an unwavering drive to succeed and to make Canada proud.
"We think we can play a monumental role in the movement."
The broadcast team has yet to be announced, but it won't be on the same scale as the Olympics, nor does it need to be.
There won't be the same battle among the hockey folks as it was to get the assignment for the Olympic men's tournament.
But sledge hockey should be the marquee event.
"I believe Canadians will fall in love with sledge hockey," Pelley said. "The athletes are passionate and competitive and we're proud to tell their stories."
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Tiger vs. Philvs. weather
The defending champion is always a big story at the U.S. Open golf tournament, but when that player is Tiger Woods it becomes huge.
Yet stealing the sympathetic storylines this week is Phil Mickelson, who is trying to get his first U.S. Open title while wife Amy is battling breast cancer.
Golf is never more compelling than when it's a Tiger vs. Phil showdown.
A year ago, Woods' battle with Rocco Mediate gave TSN a record audience, and three years ago, Mickelson's meltdown at Winged Foot was the most-talked about golf story during the past few years outside of Woods.
NBC provides the coverage for TSN, but the Canadian network has analyst Bob Weeks on site at Bethpage Black.
The tournament got off to a rocky start with a rain delay, but that could mean an extension to another day or, even better, more of the action on the weekend.
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Podcast a grand slam
A must-download for diamond fans is the ESPN Baseball Today podcast. The show was taken to a new level this week thanks to a guest television spot made by co-host Peter Pascarelli, whose sarcasm and dry wit make the podcast funnier than countless "comedy" shows.
During an Indians-Brewers telecast on ESPN, Pascarelli spent an inning in the booth with play-by-play man Dan Shulman and analyst Steve Phillips.
Listeners have long wondered what the wry Pascarelli looks like, being that he usually works behind the scenes on the broadcasts.
For those who didn't see the show -- it was unavailable in Canada -- podcast host Eric Karabell posted a photo on his Facebook page.
Karabell was then flooded with 300 friend requests just to see the picture.
Television seems to have made the radio star.
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Around the dial
How far has boxing fallen? It used to be a heavyweight title fight would be pay-per-view gold. TSN2 managed to add Wladimir Klitschko vs. Ruslan Chagaev to its live programming schedule for a song. The event will air live Saturday afternoon ... Canadian Steve Nash will make a guest appearance on the season premiere of Entourage July 12. Nash, who is small by NBA standards, may tower over characters such as E (Kevin Connolly) and agent Ari (Jeremy Piven), but it will interesting to see if the Phoenix Suns star can act.
