Maria Sharipova's Rise to Fame

Maria Sharipova's rise to fame is not unlike a lot of other players and athletes in the world. Like many, she started playing tennis with her family at a young age and at age six attended a tennis clinic. Many young players attend clinics but this one was run by Martina Navratilova. Martina recognized Sharipova's potential and encouraged her to develop it. There probably are not many people that would go against the advice of Martina and Maria and her parents were no different.

It was decided that if Maria was going to reach her full potential she should attend a tennis academy. She chose one in Florida that was suggested by Martina. Her parents, like many, made sacrifices like working extras jobs and being separated so Maria could attend the academy.

Maria's career started slow, by playing in one tournament in her first year as a pro. During the next year she played a little more and the next year, at the age of 15, she worked her way up to a 23rd place ranking. If Maria hadn't experienced fame yet, then 2004 was the year. Five titles should be enough to be noticed in the world of tennis.

However, beating Serena Williams at Wimbledon for her first Grand Slam tournament leaves no doubt. She finished 2004 and 2005 ranked at number four. There were two times in 2005 that Maria was ranked first. The first time for one week and the second time was for six weeks.