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Biography
Maria Sharapova was
born on April 19, 1987 in Nyagan, a town in the
Siberian region of Russia. In 1989, the family
moved to the Black Sea resort town of Sochi.
When she was 4 years
old, a chance encounter changed her life. She
met with the father of tennis champion Yevgeny
Kafelnikov, and the man gave her a racket. From
that moment, she started hitting tennis balls.
The game soon became a passion for her.
Two years later,
she was performing at a tennis clinic when another
tennis champion changed her life. Martina Navratilova
was in the building and she was flabbergasted
by the talent of the 6-year-old. She went to her
father, Yuri, and recommended that he take his
daughter to the world-famous Bollettieri Tennis
Academy in Florida.
Sharapova
moves to america
Soon after, this
same advice was repeated by the head coach of
the Russian Federation. Everyone agreed it was
the best thing to do in light of Maria's enormous
talent. When she was only 7, Yuri took his daughter
to the U.S. without knowing a word of English
and with less than $1,000 in his pocket.
IMG, the sports management
company, agreed to sponsor Maria and put up the
$35,000 US per year it costs to stay at the Bollettieri
Academy. Not knowing any English either, she was
very shy and introverted.
While her father
took odd jobs, Maria moved into the school dorm
when she was 9. Sharing a room with three older
girls, she quickly learned the language. Still,
it was hard on her, especially since her mother,
Yelena, remained in Russia because she couldn't
get the proper visa.
Two years later,
her mother was finally able to come to Florida
and be reunited with her daughter and husband.
From that moment, she took it upon herself to
educate Maria, who has never been in a formal
school in her life.
Maria's smash
hit
Her official tennis
career began in 2001, when she joined the junior
circuit. During that year, she won 25 matches
and only lost three. In the process, she came
away with three titles: Sacramento, Hilton Head
and Pilsen in the Czech Republic.
The following season,
Sharapova did even better on the junior circuit
with 26 victories and, again, only three losses.
She once more won three titles: Vancouver, Peachtree
and Gunma in Japan. The same year, she was allowed
to play a limited number of matches on the professional
tour.
She won one match
and lost two, including one against Monica Seles
in the second round at Indian Wells, her first
professional tournament. After all the results
were tabulated, she was ranked 186th on the WTA
charts.
Sharapova's
year
By 2003, Sharapova
had paid her dues and was able to play in the
big leagues. She joined the WTA Tour and impressed
everyone with her talent. For that season, she
came away with 34 wins and a negligible 11 losses.
Sharapova also won
two professional titles: Quebec City and the Japan
Open. She also won two doubles titles with Tamarine
Tanasugarn: Luxembourg and the Japan Open. When
the season was over, her ranking had improved
to place her at number 32.
In 2004, she stunned
Wimbledon audiences when she beat champion player
Serena Williams, making Sharapova the first Russian
to win a Wimbledon singles title and the third-youngest
women's champion in history.
Sharapova
hits the books
At present, she is
putting an end to her high school education through
Keystone High, an online high school. She does
photo shoots once in a while but her priority
is tennis. Besides, she doesn't need the money,
as she has very lucrative endorsement deals with
Nike, NEC and Prince. Sharapova currently resides
in Bradenton, Florida.
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