英語名人堂：瑪利亞·莎拉波娃

瑪利亞·莎拉波娃(Maria Sharapova)，1987年4月19日出生于俄羅斯西伯利亞漢特曼西自治區(qū)尼爾根。俄羅斯職業(yè)網(wǎng)球運動員。

2004年，莎拉波娃在溫網(wǎng)決賽中橫掃塞雷娜·威廉姆斯，奪得職業(yè)生涯的首個大滿貫冠軍[1] 。2005年8月22日，以4452.00的分數(shù)第一次登頂WTA排名世界第一。2006年9月10日，在美網(wǎng)女單決賽中戰(zhàn)勝海寧，贏得了自己的第二個大滿貫[2] 。2008年，在澳網(wǎng)決賽中完勝伊萬諾維奇，贏得了第三個大滿貫。

2012年，在法網(wǎng)決賽中決賽擊落埃拉尼，完成職業(yè)生涯的全滿貫網(wǎng)(第四個大滿貫)。2014年6月7日，擊敗對手羅馬尼亞的哈勒普贏得了第二次法網(wǎng)冠軍(第五個大滿貫)。2015年7月9日，在溫網(wǎng)女單半決賽中，負于塞雷娜·威廉姆斯，無緣決賽[3] 。

2006年，莎拉波娃被美國《體育畫報》選為“最美麗運動員”[4] 。2014年8月13日，《福布斯》雜志公布了2013-2014年度全球收入最高的女運動員排名，莎拉波娃連續(xù)十年蟬聯(lián)榜首[5] 。

2015年9月15日，瑪利亞·莎拉波娃將在中網(wǎng)重返賽場。[6] 2016年3月7日，網(wǎng)壇美女莎拉波娃在洛杉磯召開緊急新聞發(fā)布會，宣布她在今年澳網(wǎng)比賽中因服用藥物而藥檢未過關(guān)[7] 。

2016年3月8日，ITF確認莎拉波娃因服用違禁藥物而從3月12日開始禁賽。[8]

2016年6月8日，國際網(wǎng)球聯(lián)合會公布了對莎拉波娃服用禁藥的處罰，俄羅斯美女將被禁賽兩年，禁賽期從2016年1月26日開始。[9]

Maria Sharapova was born in Siberia, Russia, in 1987. She led a charge of Russian players who came to achieve great success in the women’s game. She has also brought her own brand of glamour to tennis by designing her own unique tennis outfits. At the 2007 US Open she wore a dress with over 600 crystals sewn into it.

Sharapova got her first tennis racket when she was four from the father of Grand Slam winner Yevgeny Kafelnikov. At the age of six, Maria attended a tennis clinic in Moscow run by Martina Navratilova. Navratilova recognized her talent and recommended that she go to the USA to study at a famous tennis academy in Florida.

Maria moved to the USA with her father in 1994. Neither of them could speak English. They had very little money and went to the tennis academy by bicycle every day. She described it as being a tough time. She turned professional in 2001 and a year later became the youngest girl ever to reach the junior final at Wimbledon.

Sharapova won her first Grand Slam title at Wimbledon, when she was 17. She is one of several top players who are known for loud on-court grunting. When reporters asked her about this in 2006, she told them to “put your grunt-o-meters down…and just watch the match”. Sharapova has been the world’s highest paid sportswoman and the women’s number one several times.