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STAMFORD, Conn. -- Two people in a recording booth deep inside a Connecticut office park are helping millions of blind Americans feel part of the Olympics like never before.For the first time in the U.S., NBC is airing the Olympics in prime time with additional narrators who simply report whats happening on screen -- a sort of closed captioning for the visually impaired. Most viewers wont even know the additional narrators are there; to hear them, you need to turn on special cable-box or TV settings to activate their audio track. But their running blow-by-blow can open things up for the blind, who at best get an incomplete picture from traditional sportscasting that takes visuals for granted.I love the Olympics, says Marlaina Lieberg, 66, whos been blind since birth and has long bugged her sighted husband to describe the athletic events. Im so happy Im going to be able to sit back, watch the Olympics like anybody else, know whats going on, not have to imagine or wonder. Thats huge.DESCRIBING THE SUNSETOn a recent Wednesday, narrator Norma Jean Wick opens the Olympics broadcast in a neutral, almost robotic tone, saying Golden orange sunset in Rio de Janeiro as music swells over a shot of the city. Night has fallen, she continues, right after NBCs Bob Costas intones, Aaaand here we go.Wick and Jim Van Horne, both Canadian sports broadcasting veterans, devoted hours to studying the sports and NBC commentators speech patterns. They aim to wedge in short sentences or even a few words amid the often breathless announcing. At one point during a beach volleyball match, Wick mostly limits herself to reciting the score -- otherwise invisible to those who cant see -- in-between points.While they try not to talk over announcers, it happens. During a pause, Van Horne notes that U.S. player Kerri Walsh Jennings was waiting for the wind to die down to serve; the announcers started up again before he finished his sentence. Blind viewers say sometimes they cant hear the NBC announcers in the crosstalk.Finding the right words can be difficult, said Wick, who keeps stacks of notes in front of her. When you say a spike, what does that mean? When you say a tumbling pass, well, what are they doing exactly?CAPTIONS FOR THE BLINDWhile closed captioning for the deaf today is ubiquitous, most people who arent visually impaired have never heard of audio description or video description, as this sort of narration is formally known. It was developed for U.S. TV in the 1980s, and is now available for certain prime-time series and childrens shows on the major broadcast networks and a few cable channels. Descriptions are also available in many movie theaters, on Netflix and during some live theater.For a long time, the visually impaired didnt know how much they were missing from TV shows and movies, says Paul Schroeder, head of programs and policy at the American Foundation for the Blind. If youre trying to follow a program, you need to know the basis of whats going on. The car chase, the gun shots, the subtle or not-so-subtle look across the room.But live TV events are much harder to narrate because theres no script, and as a result narrated sports events remain rare in the U.S. All that raises the level of difficulty for NBCs narrators.The aim is to provide what and how, says Van Horne -- what an individual is wearing, the expression on their face, how did they fall, how did they twist the ankle. Not only can the blind follow the action, they can also connect with the emotional upheavals that are as much a part of the Olympics as the sports.Karen Gourgey, 68, the director of a center that trains blind people to use technology at Baruch College in New York, normally finds herself bored by the Olympics, for obvious reasons, she says. Now, though, shes getting more specifics when medals are presented -- this ones in tears, that ones hugging, all the stupid stuff. Shes learned that a gymnast used the whole floor during a tumbling routine and that swimmers perch on starting blocks before they dive into the pool.You can still get quite electrified, she says.HARD-TO-SEE CONTROLSNarration for the blind isnt always easy to find or operate on TV. Lori Scharff, a 41-year-old blind social worker on New Yorks Long Island, cant activate the setting herself because shed have to navigate a TV-screen menu. She cant just leave them running all the time, either, because they share a track with Spanish-language audio that kicks in when a show isnt narrated for the blind (as most are not).Advocates credit Comcast, which owns NBC, for producing a cable box that audibly recites menu options in a mechanical female voice. That lets the blind activate narration without help from someone who can see. All major cable and satellite TV providers are required to provide similar audio features by Dec. 20.It can also be hard to know what shows gets narrated. Program guides on TV dont always include that information, although many networks and blind advocacy groups track those shows online. Cheap USWNT Jerseys . On Mar. 16, coming off a "fight of the year" performance at UFC 154 the previous November, St-Pierre faced Nick Diaz at UFC 158 in what would be his eighth defence of the welterweight title. Using his superior athleticism, St-Pierre cruised to a five round, unanimous decision victory setting up a much-anticipated title defence against number one contender Johny Hendricks. USWNT Jerseys 2021 . Tests earlier this week revealed a Grade 2 left hamstring strain for Sabathia, who was hurt in last Fridays start against San Francisco. Its an injury that will require about eight weeks to heal. He finished a disappointing campaign just 14-13 with a career-worst 4. https://www.cheapuswnt.com/ . But what about the officials? Every sport has officials and they also have stories about hard work and sacrifice but their accomplishments are seldom recognized by anyone outside their inner circle. USWNT Jerseys China . After a first half in which he thought "the lid was on the basket," the Toronto Raptors coach watched his squad mount a second half surge to defeat the Cleveland Cavaliers 98-91. USWNT Jerseys 2020 . "Trying to breathe," he said with a grin. Bernier stopped 42 of 43 shots on Monday night, including all 22 in a hectic middle frame, his heroic performance propelling the Leafs toward an undue point in their final game before the Christmas break. OAKLAND, Calif. -- Nick Franklin broke out of a slump and then had to leave the game early. Hes hoping its not an omen. Franklin homered and drove in three runs and the Seattle Mariners rallied from a four-run deficit to beat the Oakland Athletics 7-4 on Tuesday night. "Its been a grind," said Franklin, who hit his first home run in nearly a month and had seven hits in his previous 63 at bats. "I just went back to my old approach and worked through it, hoping to get better." Hell likely have to wait a few days before he gets into the lineup because of a left knee laceration suffered when he beat a throw to the plate during the decisive eighth. "I went back to the dugout and somebody thought I was in shock," Franklin said. "I was ready to go. I asked somebody to get me a new pair of pants." He averted his eyes while the team doctor put stitches in his knee that could keep him out for up to a week. Mariners interim manager Robby Thompson said it looked like he caught Derek Norris cleat. "I want to say it was five stitches," Thompson said. "He had a nice little deep gash in his left knee. He wanted to stay in, just wanted new pants. It was necessary to take care of that right away." Norris also left the game and X-rays revealed a fractured left toe. "Its been tough for our catchers here lately," As Josh Donaldson said. "Dino has struggled with his back thing and now he fractures his toe. I dont know, well see how it plays out." As catcher John Jaso has been on the disabled list since July 25 with a concussion. Brad Miller and Kendrys Morales also drove in runs for the Mariners, who won for just the third time in 53 games when trailing after seven innings. Donaldson and Nate Freiman both homered for the As, who dropped 1 1/2 games behind the AL West-leading Texas Rangers. Norris also drove in a run for the As. Sean Doolittle (4-5) allowed hits to all four batters he faced in the eighth. "I wasnt walking guys but I was leaving stuff over the plate," said Doolittle, a converted first baseman. "We made a mess of things. Its not the right time of year to have an inning like that." Brandon Maurer (4-7) pitched a scoreless seventh for the victory. Danny Farquhar earned his eighth save in 11 chances with a scoreless ninth. As rookie Sonny Gray threw seven solid innings, giving up two runs and two hits.dddddddddddd He walked two and struck out seven. Mariners starter Joe Saunders went six innings, giving up four runs and 10 hits. He struck out two and walked three. "I was just trying to stay confident," Saunders said. "Then we got some big double plays and clutch hits." The Mariners scored five times in the eighth, getting RBIs from Miller, Franklin and Morales and scoring two runs on wild pitches. The As used three pitchers, who needed 53 pitches, to get through the eighth. Doolittle has allowed six runs over his past four appearances, a span of 2 2-3 innings. "We dont see that often. That surprises everybody," As manager Bob Melvin said. "But youre going to have some games you dont get it done and thats what happened. They had some good at bats, strung some hits together and it happened pretty quickly." The As scored all their runs within the first five batters of the game. Jed Lowrie led off with a triple and scored on Norris single. Donaldson followed with his 18th home run. After Yoenis Cespedes grounded out, Nate Freiman hit a solo shot. Franklin hit a two-run home run in the third to bring Seattle within 4-2. Grey took care of the rest, retiring 13 of the final 14 batters he faced. Hes thrown at least six innings in all three of his starts. Grey had a 13-inning scoreless streak snapped when Franklin homered. Saunders gave up half of his hits in the first inning, settling in to keep Seattle within striking distance. He got double plays in three successive innings to keep the As off the scoreboard. NOTES: As OF Coco Crisp (sore left wrist) was available off the bench, but As manager Bob Melvin said he didnt want him to get more than one at-bat right-handed. Hes scheduled to play Wednesday. ... As LHP Brett Anderson is expected to throw about 65 pitches in his rehab start Thursday in Stockton. Melvin hinted it could be his last rehab, though he would not commit either way. ... Mariners interim manager Robby Thompson said he plans to talk with manager Eric Wedge, who plans to be at Fridays game in Seattle, after batting practice to develop a game plan. ... Mariners RHP Tom Wilhelmsen is expected to rejoin the team in September. He was optioned to Triple-A Tacoma on Aug. 6. ' ' '