EXTREME DODGEBALL Returns on GSN With a New League, Celebrity Captains and More Intense Action

EXTREME DODGEBALL Returns on GSN With a New League, Celebrity Captains and More Intense Action

Third Season Opens With Jeremiah Trotter, Kerri Walsh, Hal Sparks, Mario Lopez, Mia St. John and Tara Dakides Leading Teams Representing Philadelphia, Detroit, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York and Denver

Rip Torn Named Commissioner as a New Playing Format and Arena are Unveiled on July 19

SANTA MONICA, Calif., June 14 /PRNewswire/ -- The game that everyone grew up playing on the playgrounds continues to grow in popularity and GSN is bringing it home to viewers with an exciting new format as season three of EXTREME DODGEBALL premieres on Tuesday, July 19 at 10 PM ET/PT.

Celebrity actors and world class athletes are getting in on the fun this season. Each of the new six teams in the league feature a celebrity player captain. Jeremiah Trotter (Philadelphia Eagles All-Pro linebacker), Hal Sparks ("Queer as Folk"), Kerri Walsh (Olympic Gold Medalist and #1 on the AVP Beach Volleyball Tour), Mario Lopez ("The Other Half"), Tara Dakides (World Class snowboarder, Gold Medalist in 2000 & 2001 X-Games Big Air competition) and Mia St. John (IFBA Lightweight World Champion Boxer) lead their respective teams throughout the season on GSN.

Helming the new EXTREME DODGEBALL teams as player-captains are Trotter for the Philadelphia Benjamins; Sparks for the Chicago Hitmen; Dakides for the Denver Hurlers; Walsh for the Detroit Spoilers; Lopez for the L.A. Armed Response and St. John for the New York Bling. Each team is comprised of seven players; five men and two women.

EXTREME DODGEBALL has also named a new commissioner to help viewers with the new format. Rip Torn, the veteran actor who was featured in the movie "Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story" is the new GSN EXTREME DODGEBALL version of David Stern, Paul Tagliabue and Bud Selig.

The season long competition culminates with the semi-finals and championship match as the teams compete for $170,000 in prize money.

"In the past year, dodgeball has become the hot new coed game at colleges, fitness centers and in gymnasiums across America," said Rich Cronin, President and CEO of GSN. "GSN's EXTREME DODGEBALL series will build the game's popularity and attract viewers with a combination of real competition and comedy entertainment. From our new commissioner, Rip Torn, to our new celebrity captains to hosts Bil Dwyer, Zach Selwyn and Michele Merkin, this season's EXTREME DODGEBALL is more compelling than ever. We even have our own outrageous mascot, Dodgy! What other summer series can offer all this?"

Also new for the season is a redesigned, state-of-the-art Dodgeball arena with curved back walls. The rules were restructured to feature four quarters, adding a time clock and a point-based scoring system. A penalty throw was a new addition this year for those athletes receiving yellow or red card infractions. EXTREME DODGEBALL continues to use two balls in competition in addition to a big ball used for increased scoring in the second quarter.

"We spent a lot of time in the off season working to make EXTREME DODGEBALL more exciting for the viewers and the players," said Ian Valentine, SVP of Programming, GSN. "The new time and scoring formats combined with a no-out-of-bounds arena have really upped the drama of the game. We think our audience will love it."

The basic format for each game is as follows: There are four quarters featuring six-minutes of extreme dodgeball action. Points are awarded each time a player catches a ball and/or hits an opponent. The team earning the most points at the end of the game is the winner of that match. At the end of the regular season each team will have played 10 games. The top four teams in the league will compete in the play-offs. The two teams that win their playoff games will face off for the championship.

Bil Dwyer ("Battlebots") and Zach Selwyn ("Dream Job") return as the play-by-play announcer and color commentator, respectively. Joining the announcing crew this year is Michele Merkin ("E!"), who provides on-court commentary and interviews.

As with any major sport, EXTREME DODGEBALL would not be complete without a mascot. GSN introduces "Dodgy" to the fans at the arena and at home in this new season of fun and games.

EXTREME DODGEBALL first premiered on GSN in June of 2004. It is executive produced by Mark Cronin and James Rowley of Mindless Entertainment, producers of CRAM, NATIONAL LAMPOON'S GREEK GAMES and WHO WANTS TO BE GOVERNOR OF CALIFORNIA? THE DEBATING GAME for GSN, as well as "The Surreal Life" and "Strange Love", "America's Most Talented Kids", and "The Ultimate Film Fanatic".

Source: GSN

CONTACT: Dennis Johnson of GSN, +1-310-255-6935, djohnson@gsn.com

Web site: http://www.gsn.com/

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