Sun, Ye lead Sports Personality of the Year nominees

China Central Television (CCTV) announced the shortlist of this year's Sports Personality of the Year awards Thursday in Beijing.

Olympic gold medalists Sun Yang and Ye Shiwen head the lists of 50 nominees for 10 categories.

Sun, the champion in the men's 400m and 1500m freestyle events at London Olympic Games, is nominated for the Best Male Athlete. The nominees also include badminton superstar Lin Dan, table tennis champion Zhang Jike, gold medalist in fencing Lei Sheng and boxer Zou Shiming.

Sailor Xu Lijia, shooter Yi Siling, diver Wu Minxia and swimmer Jiao Liuyang joined Ye for the competition of the Best Female Athlete.

Basketball rising star Wang Zhelin heads the list contending for the Rookie of the Year.

The annual CCTV Sports Awards, recognized as the Chinese version of the Laureus World Sports Awards, is taken as the premier honors on the Chinese sporting calendar. The results will be unveiled on Jan. 19, 2013.

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