“Valuable start”: tennis player Maria Sharapova prepares to become a mother

35-year-old Maria Sharapova is preparing to become a mother for the first time. On social networks she posted a photo on the beach with a noticeably enlarged belly. Maria accompanied this frame with an obvious clue.

“Valuable start. Eating a birthday cake for two has always been my specialty.”

Wrote.

Maria’s personal life has always been under the scrutiny of the press and fans. Maybe because Sharapova’s entire career seems to be focused solely on sports. Unlike many tennis players who took a break for the sake of pregnancy and returned to the court after the birth of a child, the Russian woman did not even think about it.

Sharapova’s first steps in world tennis were already truly impressive and promising: she won a sensational victory at Wimbledon at the age of 17, becoming the first and last ever Russian woman to enter the British Grand Slam tournament. .

Then she defeated the American Serena Williams, who later became her most principled opponent, in two sets.

In August 2005, Maria received the status of the world’s first racket, and over the next nine years she became the winner of TBSh four more times: she won Roland Garros twice at the Australian and US Opens. In 2012, the athlete won a silver medal at the London Olympics.

The decline in Sharapova’s career was even sadder: In March 2016, she announced in a private press conference that she had tested positive for meldonium, which had been included on the World Anti-Doping Agency’s (WADA) banned list two months earlier. .

As a result, a two-year suspension was subsequently reduced to 15 months. Maria took the drug containing this substance for 10 years – not to improve athletic performance, as she herself emphasizes. This influenced the decision to reduce the suspension period. After her term expired, the Russian woman returned to the sport, but she could no longer achieve her former successes, moreover, injuries affected her. She announced her retirement in February 2020.

At the same time, it would be unfair to say that there was nothing but tennis in Sharapova’s life. On the contrary, he found time for other things without focusing on his personal life. Therefore, for several years he was the Goodwill Ambassador of the UN Development Programme, awarded medals of the Order of Merit for the Fatherland, first and second degrees for charitable work, and for his contribution to the development of physical culture and sport in Russia. Federation. During a forced pause due to disqualification, Maria published an autobiography. In addition, he did not forget about business: in 2011 he founded a company in the United States for the production of sugar under the brand Sugarpova.

According to Forbes, he earned a total of about $325 million during his career, taking into account not only prize money, but also income from business, advertising and professional contracts.

Now that a busy career is behind her, nothing can stop Maria from creating personal happiness. Note that the chosen one from Sharapova is not a poor person. British Alexander Gilks ​​is not as well-known to sports fans as the ex-boyfriends of the Russian woman, basketball player Sasha Vuyachich and tennis player Grigor Dimitrov, but in his field this figure is quite remarkable. Gilks ​​is the co-founder of Paddle8, an online art and collectibles auction site. The millionaire stepped down in 2018 and founded venture capital firm Squared Circles two years later.

His affair with Sharapova became known in 2018, and in December 2020, Maria announced her engagement. At the same time, the couple has not yet legalized relations – according to the tennis player herself, the coronavirus pandemic interfered with the plans, and in such cases it would not be the best idea to organize a celebration.