ATLANTA, Dec. 18, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Cartoon Network announced the first 10 voting categories and nominees for the third annual Hall of Game sports awards show, which returns in February 2013.  Airing across several Cartoon Network and Turner Broadcasting platforms, hosts Shaquille O'Neal and Nick Cannon broke the news with a special introduction featuring a brand new Hall of Game nominee's song. 

(Photo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20121218/CL31841 )

Viewers can log on to HallofGame.com, CartoonNetwork.com, Facebook.com/CartoonNetwork, YouTube.com/user/CartoonNetwork and Blog.CartoonNetwork.com to see the announcement.  The video will also be on CNN.com/showbiz and HLNTV.com and will air at 6:58 p.m. (ET/ PT) on Cartoon Network.

Cartoon Network Hall of Game Awards show will feature icons from television, film, music and sports, as kids experience an evening of humor and fun at the most raucous and biggest sports awards show ever.  Last year's event yielded 102 million votes and voting is now open for the first 10 categories at www.HallofGame.com.

And the categories and nominees are . . .

Most Awesome Mascot
Kansas City Chiefs "KC Wolf" (NFL)
St. Louis Blues "Louie" (NHL)
San Francisco Giants "Lou Seal" (MLB)
Denver Nuggets "Rocky" (NBA)

Alti-Dude
(Top alternative sports high flyer)
Kelly Clark (Snowboarding)
Nyjah Huston (Skateboarding)
Kelly Slater (Surfing)
Shaun White (Snowboarding)

That's How I Roll
(The award for the most stylish athlete.)
Jonny Gomes, Oakland A's (MLB)
Brett Keisel, Pittsburg Steelers (NFL)
Ryan Lochte, Team USA (Swimming)
Serena Williams, WTA (Tennis)

He's Got Game
(The award for the best male athlete.)
Usain Bolt (Track)
Miguel Cabrera, Detroit Tigers (MLB)
Arian Foster, Houston Texans (NFL)
LeBron James, Miami Heat (NBA)

She's Got Game
(The award for the best female athlete.)
Tamika Catchings, Indiana Fever (WNBA)
Gabby Douglas, Team USA (Gymnastics)
Alex Morgan, Team USA (Soccer)
Serena Williams, WTA (Tennis)

Dynamic Duo
(The award for the best teammates.)
Kevin Durant & Russell Westbrook, Oklahoma City Thunder (NBA)
Eli Manning & Victor Cruz, New York Giants (NFL)
Michael Phelps & Ryan Lochte, Team USA (Swimming)
Misty May-Treanor & Kerri Walsh, Team USA (Volleyball)

Gnarliest Newcomer
(The award for the top rookie.)
Missy Franklin, Team USA (Swimming)
Robert Griffin III, Washington Redskins (NFL)
Andrew Luck, Indianapolis Colts (NFL)
Mike Trout, Los Angeles Angels (MLB)

We Got Game
(The award for the best team.)
Los Angeles Kings (NHL)
Miami Heat (NBA)
San Francisco Giants (MLB)
US Olympic Women's Gymnastics Team

Super Siblings
(The award for best related athletes.)
Pau & Marc Gasol (NBA)
Peyton & Eli Manning (NFL)
Eric, Marc, Jordan & Jared Staal (NHL)
Venus & Serena Williams (WTA)

Best Foes Forever
(Award for the greatest rivals.)
Rory McIlroy vs. Tiger Woods (PGA)
San Francisco Giants vs. Los Angeles Dodgers (MLB)
Jimmie Johnson vs. Brad Keselowski (NASCAR)
Duke vs. University of North Carolina (NCAA)

Hosted by Shaquille O'Neal and Nick Cannon, Cartoon Network Hall Of Game Awards is the first-of-its-kind, sports award and entertainment event for kids, and will once again be produced by IMG Media, the production arm of global sports, entertainment and media company, IMG.  Time Inc. Sports Group's SI KIDS franchise will be serving again as an official media partner. Veteran, award-winning television and special events producer, Michael Dempsey, and Steve Mayer will again serve as executive producers.  Viewers can expect a star-packed red carpet, on stage celebrity surprises, superstars from television, film, music and sports, and hilarious hijinks all wrapped up into one awesome awards show.

Among his many accolades during his 19-year playing career, O'Neal was chosen as one of the NBA's 50 Greatest Players, ranks fifth all-time in NBA scoring history (28,596 points scored), won the Rookie of the Year award (1993) and MVP award (2000) and was named All-NBA 14 times.  Additionally, his career includes four NBA Championships—three with the LA Lakers (2000—2002), where he was named NBA Finals MVP for all three championships, and one with the Miami Heat (2006).  The 15-time NBA All-Star and three-time NBA All-Star MVP (2000, 2004, 2009) also won two scoring titles (1995, 2000).  He appeared in 1,207 regular season games, averaging 23.7 points, 10.9 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 2.3 blocks in 34.7 minutes per contest throughout his career, which included playing for the Orlando Magic, LA Lakers, Miami Heat, Phoenix Suns, Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics. He is currently an NBA analyst for TNT's Sports Emmy Award-winning Inside the NBA studio show and also offers analysis on NBA TV, which is jointly managed by the NBA and Turner Sports.

Nick Cannon, executive producer of the upcoming Cartoon Network sketch-comedy series Incredible Crew, made his television debut as a teenage sketch comedian on the series All That where he was also a writer, making him the youngest staff writer in television history at the age of 17. Cannon catapulted onto the big screen in 2002 when he appeared alongside Will Smith in Men in Black II before landing a leading role in Drumline. He hosted Wild 'N Out, a show that he created and executive produced for MTV, which was the network's highest-rated comedy series in its history.  In the fall of 2006, Cannon was featured in the film, Bobby, where his performance earned him a 2007 SAG nomination as well as being the first African American actor to be honored at the Cannes Film Festival with the "Breakthrough Actor of the Year" award. Most recently Cannon can be seen as the host of NBC's America's Got Talent as well as a series regular on Up All Night, which earned him recognition at this year's 2012 NAACP Image Awards for "Outstanding Supporting Actor." 

About Cartoon Network

Cartoon Network (CartoonNetwork.com) is the #1 U.S. television network among boys 6-11. Currently seen in 99 million U.S. homes and 194 countries around the world, Cartoon Network is Turner Broadcasting System, Inc.'s ad-supported cable service now available in HD offering the best in original, acquired and classic entertainment for kids and families. In addition to Emmy-winning original programming and industry-leading digital apps and online games, Cartoon Network embraces key social issues affecting families with solution-oriented initiatives such as Stop Bullying: Speak Up and the Move It Movement.

Turner Broadcasting System, Inc., a Time Warner company, creates and programs branded news, entertainment, animation and young adult media environments on television and other platforms for consumers around the world.

About IMG Media

IMG Media operates from over 30 offices worldwide and distributes content across all forms of media including TV, Audio, Fixed Media, Inflight and Closed Circuit, Broadband and Mobile. IMG Media Production generates 6000 hours of programming, over 200 projects in locations around the world. These include coverage of: 2012 Olympic Tennis, New York City Marathon, Masters, PGA Championship, ATP and WTA Tennis, Professional Bull Riding Wimbledon, Premier League Soccer. IMG Media also has produced entertainment specials and events such as: NHL All-Star Game, NHL Awards, Ryder Cup, Super Bowl's Greatest Commercials, World's and Year's Funniest Commercials for TBS, Christmas in Rockefeller Center, and Boston Pops 4^th of July Spectacular. IMG Media also maintains the world's largest sports archive with more than 250,000 hours of footage.

About Time Inc. Sports Group's SI KIDS Franchise  

Sports Illustrated Kids, the first sports magazine written for kids ages 8 and up, connects with its readers through their passion for sports. The magazine offers kids the access to athletes and sports information that they want with in-depth reporting, action photography, first-person athlete accounts and other features. The magazine, books, and web site sikids.com, promote positive values, good sportsmanship and the fun of reading.

SOURCE Cartoon Network