The wires continue to play catch-up on the American TV coverage of the Paralympics story, which I broke here almost 3 weeks ago:

IPC disappointed over no U.S. TV coverage

ATHENS, Greece (AP) - The International Paralympic Committee on Friday expressed disappointment that there was no television coverage of the Athens Games in the United States.

«It's a disappointment for the U.S. athletes and the people of the U.S.A.,» IPC president Phil Craven said.

About 50 nations have bought broadcasting rights to the 11-day Paralympics, but none are from the U.S. Any American network could buy rights if they wanted to, said IPC spokeswoman Miriam Wilkens.

The United States Olympic Committee has bought non-exclusive rights to be aired in November.

«The bottom line is it is a pity ... since the U.S.A. has quite a large delegation,» Wilkens said.