Born in 1987 in Siberia, Maria Sharapova moved to the Black Sea resort town of Sochi a year later. She was an only child in a family whose comfortable means allowed for playing tennis and skiing.

At age 6, Maria attended a tennis exhibition in Moscow where she met tennis great Martina Navratilova, who suggested that the young girl train professionally.

Her father Yuri took Maria to Bradenton, Florida, where she commenced training at the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy, training ground for tennis greats Monica Seles, Andre Agassi, and Pete Sampras. The Academy was bought by talent agency IMG, which offered Maria a full scholarship. She soon was playing competitively against much older girls, and at age 13 she won a 16-and-under championship. Two years later she was the youngest player to reach the finals of the Australian Open Junior championship. By 2003, at 16, she won her first adult pro tournament, in Japan.


Then came Wimbledon 2004. The tournament marked the 8th grand slam final for two-time Wimbledon champ Serena Williams. It was the first final for 13th-seeded Maria, but she completely dominated, winning 6-1, 6-4. She took five straight games to capture the first set and came back from a 4-2 deficit to win the second set and the match.

Overall record:

Career singles titles (10) -- 2003: Tokyo [Japan Open], Quebec City; 2004: Birmingham, Wimbledon, Seoul, Tokyo [Japan Open], Season-Ending Championships; 2005: Tokyo [Pan Pacific], Doha, Birmingham. Finalist (2): 2004: Zurich; 2005: Miami. Career win-loss record: 195-50