http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/columns/story?columnist=hughes_frank&id=1678375 No failure to communicate -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- By Frank Hughes Special to ESPN.com Last season, the Houston Rockets were playing one of a myriad of their regular-season games when an unnamed referee sidled up to 7-foot-5 rookie center Yao Ming and uttered some directions. Yao did not respond. At first, the official thought, he was too far away from a man standing that tall, whose ears were two feet away from the offical's mouth. So the referee yelled louder. Still, Yao did not respond, and the referee thought that perhaps the language barrier with the native of China was having an effect. So the official called Yao by name to get his attention. Still, nothing. Thinking that Yao was being aloof, that he already had been indoctrinated into the Rasheed Wallace-led us-vs.-them mentality of the NBA, the official sauntered over to the Rockets' bench and asked the coaching staff what was up with the new guy. "He can't hear out of his left ear," the official was told. Both Steve Francis, left, and Yao Ming have had to deal with hearing loss. It's a little-known fact about a man who has had more written about him in the past year than any Chinese citizen since Rikki tikki tembo-no sa rembo-chari bari ruchi-pip peri pembo. Yao said that when he was eight- or nine-years-old, he became sick and was prescribed a medicine. He ended up being allergic to the medicine, which robbed him of about 60 percent hearing in his left ear. He said it was not much of a problem growing up and is not a great deal of a problem now that he plays in the NBA. "It affects me a little bit," Yao said. "Sometimes, when it's really loud on the court, I can't hear clearly. But it's not really a problem anymore." Yao downplays the handicap, and in truth it does not make a noticeable difference in his game. However, his interpreter, Colin Pine, a former U.S. government worker who was picked from literally hundreds of applicants, said it was enough of an issue that he was told immediately about the deficiency. "When I met him at the airport the first time, I was told to stand on one side," Pine said. "Then, later on, we had to fill out medical stuff, and it came out." Pine said in Yao's rookie season he would have to make concessions during timeouts. "I hardly ever have to do that anymore, but before, when he was a rookie, and we would be in the huddles, and when I would do interviews, I would always make sure I was on his right side," Pine said. "There aren't really any effects of it anymore. Except occasionally, like the referee said, someone will yell at him and he won't hear. He makes up for it during timeouts by sitting in certain places so he can hear." In something of an odd twist, Rockets point guard Steve Francis said he also has a hard time hearing out of his left ear, a result of the painful migraine headaches he experienced that kept him out of games in the 2001-02 season. As a result, the Rockets use hand signals to call plays rather than communicating verbally. As for that referee who thought Yao was ignoring him, well, Yao says the incident has slipped his mind (wink wink). "If I remember," he said with a smile, "than obviously I would have been ignoring him on purpose. So I don't remember."
Yeah, I just saw this at ESPN myself. Kinda weird, never did know this about Yao, but seems like he's coping well with it. And he lost 60%, meaning he has only 40% left, not vice-versa.
I have the same exact problem. I had a cholestoatoma(tumor) in my left ear, and lost 60% of my hearing in it. It doesn't really bother me that bad. Every now and then, I'll have to ask someone what they said, but nothing too bad. The only time it bothers me is on the phone. I have to hold the phone to my right ear.
I see horribly out of my right eye (bottle rocket + eye = detatched retina => surgery)... Took me forever to get my shot back on after the accident, try playing ball with your right eye closed the whole game sometime... Oh and atleast hearing doesn't really effect the game too much...
Unbalanced hearings undermine the ability to judge directions of sound. However, the brain system may make some adjustment, like some compensation for Yao's left ear.
no wonder yelling at the screen and telling yao to dunk the damn ball never worked. and yelling at steve to pass the damn ball never worked as well. van gundy must have great hearing because i keep telling him not to have a heart attack.
Wow, so many people have hearing problem. Mm, I might think it over to open a clinic for hearing loss.
If you are serious, go get an ultrasound done. That is not something you want to take lightly. Testicular cancer is the number 1 cancer for men 16-35.
Wow! So Yao and Steve have the same problem? Wow. My heart and prayers goes out to them and others here who suffer a form of handicap or ailment.
I wouldn't worry too much about it. It is normal for one testicle to be bigger than the other. However, guys our age should examine themselves regularly for any hard bumps on the testicles, they could be a sign of cancer. If you feel any bumps on your testicles, see a doctor right away.
I had my suspicions that Yao had trouble with his hearing. This article confirms my thoughts. I watched the game vs Utah on Thursday. I remember one particular moment -- I think it was in the 3rd quarter. Yao, in particular, was playing excellent defense. He was all over Lopez after coming around an Ostertag screen, intimidating him from going to the basket. Lopez passed out, and the ball wound up in Ostertag's hands. Yao was right on him, causing him to be called for a "traveling" violation. You could see Jeff Van Gundy on the sidelines, VERY noticably pleased with what he just saw. He immediately started shouting, "Yao! Yao! Yao!". Yao appeared to not hear him and began running down to the other end of the court. Yao finally seemed to notice JVG flailing his hands out of the corner of his eye, after Steve was making some hand signals. Looked like a "W", holding out three fingers. I was trying to lip-read what JVG was saying, but I couldn't make it out.
