At Maria Sharapova's first modeling gig back in 2005, the tennis star was greener than the grass courts of Wimbledon. The Tag Heuer photo shoot had star snapper Patrick Demarchelier behind the lens. "I didn't really know much about him at the time," she confesses shyly. "He kept saying 'magnifique.' I think I would have been more nervous if I had known how successful he was, so I'm glad I didn't know at the time." Fast-forward to 2012, and Sharapova is very fashion-fluent, citing Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen, Lanvin and Rick Owens as her favorite designers. When she scored her first pair of Jimmy Choo heels, she slept with them under her pillow. She even designs sparkly ballet flats and pink handbags for Cole Haan, drawing inspiration from the street style she spots (and snaps with her camera) when traveling the globe all year round.
Despite her fashionable pursuits, not to mention numerous campaigns and photo shoots (in addition to Tag Heuer, she is also a model and spokesperson for Nike, Tiffany's, Canon, among other mega-brands), Sharapova is first and foremost, a star athlete. And it's her tennis career that grabs the most headlines -- though recent ones have been less than forgiving following Victoria Azarenka's brutal win over Sharapova (6-3/6-0) at the Australian Open women's singles final in January.
But don't cry for Sharapova. In 2011, Forbes named her the highest paid female athlete (she makes a whopping $24.5 million a year) as well as one of the 100 most powerful celebrities in the world. Incidentally, she's also been named one of People magazine's "50 Most Beautiful People."
From her hotel room in Australia, lounging in sweatpants and a new Nike sweatshirt, Sharapova is relaxed, despite upcoming trips to Moscow, Paris and Istanbul. If that's not enough to keep her frazzled, her Slovenian-born professional basketball player boyfriend Sasha Vujacic proposed to her in October, and they plan to tie the knot in the relatively near future. "We are engaged but don't have official wedding plans yet," she claims, seeming to want to guard her personal life as much as possible, with the public eye watching her every move on and off the court. "We talk about [the wedding] all the time and have a good idea of what it will be like. But we both have pretty crazy schedules so seeing each other as much as we can is our main goal." Sharapova adds that after our talk, she has a "FaceTime date" with Vujacic.
It was tennis legend Martina Navratilova who encouraged a six-year-old Sharapova (they met at a tennis clinic in Moscow) to move to the United States. So at seven, she and her father moved to Florida so she could attend the famous Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy. Her career "wow" moment came when she beat Serena Williams in the 2004 Wimbledon final. More wins soon followed -- despite being relatively petite, she's known for her hyper-speed and playing an aggressive baseline. And don't forget her famous reverse forehand, an unusual move in the Women's Tennis Association, but has won her countless matches and earned her a spot as one of Time magazine's "30 Legends of Women's Tennis: Past, Present and Future" in 2011.
Yet despite the success, fame and fortune, Sharapova leads a relatively mellow life in the laid-back surfer community of Manhattan Beach, California. She hangs with her Pomeranian named Dolce (we told you she was a fashion girl), sings karaoke in Little Tokyo ("I can sing a good Cher") and works for charities, such as the United Nations Development Programme, where she brings awareness to regions in Russia, Belarus and the Ukraine that were affected by the Chernobyl nuclear disaster.
As a way to keep in touch with her gazillions of obsessed fans, she constantly updates her blog, often interviewing herself and making top ten lists (from things that annoy her -- like when "they don't have the shoes I want in my size" -- to her favorite restaurants). And herFacebook page serves as a travel diary so her friends and fans can see where she has been. On her bucket list? To visit Cambodia, Venice, New Zealand and Morocco -- but as a regular tourist and not as a visiting tennis superstar.
Recently, there have been rumors that Sharapova, who turns 25 this year, is planning on retiring early. But that rumor appears to be unfounded: "I have always been competitive from a young age," she concludes, anxious for some fiancé FaceTime. "I always wanted to be first in line."
Photos & text: www.papermag.com
GO MARIA !!!
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