Three and a half years ago, Maria Sharapova completed her professional performances on the WTA circuit. After a series of failures and numerous injuries, the legendary tennis player decided to put on her racket and begin a new stage in her life. Now the five-time owner of TBS is developing her business and building a personal life with billionaire Alexander Gilkes, with whom she gave birth to a son, Theodore, in the summer of 2022. Sharapova is also a regular guest of honor at exhibitions and catwalk shows. fashion, and also speaks in forums in defense of women’s rights.
Maria Sharapova
Photo: From the personal archive of Maria Sharapova.
María does not forget sports. Thus, at the end of November 2023, the former world number one visited the F1 stage in Abu Dhabi and shared her impressions of the event.
“Yes, I am an F1 fan. This is my second time at the Abu Dhabi race and it wasn’t planned, so I’m having fun, enjoying myself and watching the athletes perform.
F1 drivers are athletes, physically and most importantly mentally. You have to fight and it doesn’t matter if you are behind or in the lead. You should always be ready for a challenge.
Would you like someone to win? I have known Lewis for many years. [Хэмилтона] “I will always support him, but overall I’m glad he’s in Abu Dhabi,” Sharapova said in an interview with Sky Sports.
And before that, the 36-year-old Nyagan native made it to the US Open.
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In 2008, Maria admitted that she loves to participate in different activities and learn something new. In addition, the tennis player likes to shop: she can walk through the stores for hours.
“I really like changing areas of activity. This goes so unnoticed in my life. I can train in the morning, film in the afternoon and give interviews at night. And when the day is over, I go to bed and think, “My God, how much I have accomplished today!” – said Sharapova.
The famous national athlete also achieved it this time. The five-time Grand Slam champion visited the Armchair Expert podcast and spoke candidly about many topics in her life.
On the differences between objectives in sport and in business
“Everything is different now. Previously, when I was asked about my sports plans for five or ten years, I answered that I wanted to win more Slams and be the first racket in the world. In business, things are a little different. Plus I’m already 36 years, I became a mother, so I have to combine several things. Before tennis was the first thing, but now I do several things at the same time.
The goal is not to focus on one thing, but to find balance. Live in the present, allow yourself to relax and not remain in constant tension, expecting great results from yourself and your body, but at the same time you need to continue developing.
Since I was little I have been curious. I liked to learn, understand, delve into the processes to achieve success. That’s why I continue doing business. There are so many areas: I feel competent in some and completely incompetent in others. I want to understand areas that I am not very familiar with yet,” Sharapova admitted.
About your life goals
“When you do something since you were little, this is your goal. Now I have time to think and formulate my goals. I can determine them myself.
I would love to be a mentor, get involved in the lives of young women, help them move from school or university to their first job or help them decide what the next step will be, which will give them the opportunity to excel. its outstanding qualities and potential.
Many athletes are at the point where they want to achieve more, but they don’t know how, they don’t know where. What resources can they use? Where can I find the equipment? “I would like to be part of these people’s journey,” said the winner of 36 WTA singles tournaments.
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About his childhood memories and the years he spent after the explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.
“I had a completely different upbringing, I was born in Siberia because of the explosion at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, and my mother was pregnant with me, at that time they lived 30 kilometers from the site of the explosion in Belarus,” he said. The Russian woman said.
Podcast host Dax Shepard joked about the “benefits” the accident brought to the athlete, referring to her height of 188 centimeters.
“This has been mentioned several times. Nobody [в моей семье] He’s not as tall as me, so they definitely took that into account,” Maria responded (laughs).
“We fled to Siberia, I was born there and a few years later we moved south, to a warmer city. [Сочи] on the shores of the Black Sea, where I began my journey. Then, when I was five, my father and I flew to Florida, and since then I have lived in the United States,” added the former leader of the WTA ranking.
About separation from mother
“My mother was not with me during the first two years in the United States. I haven’t seen her in two years. It’s so interesting to remember this because I’m now a mother of a 16-month-old boy and I can’t imagine this kind of separation.
It was an unknown world simply because getting visas was as difficult at the time as, by the way, it is now. But my mother placed a lot of importance on the fact that her husband and her daughter had the opportunity to play sports in the United States, and this was an incredible gift of fate. I think she saw it that way.
Part of me also thinks that my mom and I didn’t have as direct a Facetime connection as we do now. My father didn’t have a cell phone, I didn’t have a cell phone. They were letters, like physical letters addressed to my mother. And this didn’t make this situation easier or normal, but I think I had the feeling that I would see my mother again,” the Russian woman said.
Maria Sharapova with her parents
Photo: From the personal archive of Maria Sharapova.
About the influence of his parents on his game and his life.
“My father was a great influence in sport, he encouraged me, he was tough but fair. My mother was involved in my education, cultural development and whenever possible, even if it was in Sarasota, Florida, she took me to the ballet. It may not have been the best ballet, but my mother taught me different things in life besides hitting a tennis ball. This was one of the greatest gifts she gave me, because she didn’t care if I was number one or number 300 in the world. “She wanted me to be curious and modest,” María opened.
About the 2004 Wimbledon final with Serena Williams
“There was a lot at stake in this match… one of the main reasons was that it was Wimbledon. In fact, a few months ago I played Serena in a tournament in Miami and she easily won that match in straight sets. This was the moment I really felt the heaviness. When I was a child, Wimbledon in my eyes was a special event, a tournament, a place where I wanted to retire as a professional, I wanted those French doors to open the way to Center Court.
It’s not that I had much experience in the majors… just two weeks before the Wimbledon final I reached my first quarter-final at the French Open. Although I lost, it was a great personal victory.
I found myself in a state of flow in the middle of a tournament, playing against someone who was also expected to beat me. But I won that match so confidently and habitually. I felt like I had let go of any fear I had. I simply let the moment and my skill manifest in all its splendor,” Sharapova concluded.
