...Crazy About Hot n Sexy Maria Sharapova...

2009-11-07T22:54:00.000-08:00

Uncover The Magic Behind A Winning Soccer Team

Have you ever imagined how a handful of secret youth soccer coaching tips can help you build a great soccer team The answer is most likely No because you think that it takes years of practice and experience to become a good coach. In this article, we share some important kids soccer drills that will put the kids on a winning track.

The game of soccer demands great deal of planning, expertise, and athleticism. It is your duty to help the kids realize that. At the beginning, keep it simple. What are the different aspects of soccer, strategies, practice drills, fitness, diet, and basically everything that makes the game and its players? Make sure that you are not talking all the time and the kids are also throwing their part. Motivate the kids to talk to you. When you are friendly to them, the kids will enjoy learning and playing soccer.

Be very cautious executing youth soccer coaching drills. Before each practice session, give the kids instructions. The instructions should not be very long. A session that lasts for 30 minutes, do not devote more than 10 minutes to initial briefing. Do not interfere during the drill and let the boys have fun with the game. Take note of the mistakes being made and address them afterwards or during the breaks. Make a point to stay away from the session unless it becomes imperative else it may steal the fun from the drills. These soccer coaching tips can do wonders.

Frame the feedback carefully. The kids may take things to heart. Ensure that you maintain a degree of calmness when talking to kids. It is suicidal to use foul language. Your understanding of what kids can do or achieve at specific age groups is crucial in this communication. It is important that you pay attention to what others have to say. At times, even young players have powerful ideas that can be translated into great results.

Parents naturally have a great interest in how their kids are progressing. Try to involve them as much as you can. It is not possible to be with them the entire day. For the kids to succeed in each endeavor, their parents play a major role by directing their life in the right direction. It is a great idea to meet them often and share your views as well as seek theirs. It is important to remember that these meetings are scheduled anytime after or before the training session. Please ensure that kids are not a part of these meetings. It is important to involve kids parents to make the learning process easy and interesting which would require you to make the parents understand your dream and related approach too.

Kids must stay motivated to continuously work towards the stated goals and it depends on how well their hard work is recognized. It will bring positive results in form of greater confidence levels by being accepted for their work. Once the kids reach a certain level of complexity, go ahead and increase it. In soccer conditioning, there is no harm in testing the capabilities of the young ones and also present a few challenges but do not go overboard with them.

Be very careful while practicing it. Youth soccer is demanding on your time and energy, asks for complete knowledge and a right coach to make it big. These soccer coaching tips will help you move forward in creating a winning team. Even a diamond in its raw form needs polishing by a professional, so you must also become a part of our youth soccer coaching facility to go places in your profession.

inflatable goal posts

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portable inflatable goals

2007-11-23T08:57:00.000-08:00

A Social Networking site for sports enthusiasts

As a sports fan I recently visited a new website called Oddsbreakers, I was delighted to see the site has fully embraced the concept of Web 2.0 by providing a social network for global football fans. The site combines an up to date news facility from football clubs around the world, the site also includes an interactive, user-friendly chat interface. The concept of Web 2.0 was initially born from a meeting between Tim O’ Reilly and MediaLive International, the results of this meeting were visionary. Their interpretation was, that far from the internet ‘crashing’ when the dot-com bubble burst in 2001, it was in fact flourishing with new websites and applications appearing on a regular basis. The results of this meeting turned out to be true, however at the time they were scorned.

The introduction of social networking sites is a major aspect of Web 2.0, you will no doubt have heard of the major players in this industry, such as; Stumbleupon, MySpace and Facebook. These sites are growing at such an alarming rate that is it forecast they could well be bigger than Google by the year 2015.

Oddsbreakers have recently launched their own brand of Web 2.0 by delivering a social networking that focuses on delivering up to date football and other sports news and gossip. I have longed to find a website like this, generally I have to visit around 5 sites to find out what’s going on in the sports world. Now I simply visit this website where I am able to find out all I need to know. It is nice and refreshing to see Oddsbreakers pushing the boundaries by combining the ethos of web 2.0 with a sporting network, I personally believe social networking sites will form the corner stone of the Internet for many years to come. They are certainly user friendly, fun to use and they are a great medium for interaction and making new friends.

I am sure the site will be well subscribed to by global sports fans and webmasters alike.

2007-06-24T10:28:00.000-07:00

Stronger Sharapova confident before favorite slam

Maria Sharapova returns to her favorite tournament next week feeling stronger than ever and confident she can repeat her 2004 success.

The Russian surprised many people, including herself, by reaching the French Open semi-finals earlier this month, on one of her least favourite surfaces and while still recovering from a shoulder injury that sidelined her for two months."I think that definitely gives me a lot of confidence moving on to the grass season," the 20-year-old world number two told Reuters in an interview.

"If my shoulder holds up and goes the way it went the last two weeks then I'm definitely really confident."

On grass she is a far cry from the 'cow on ice' description she gave herself on clay in Paris and her record at Wimbledon of two semi-final appearances since her win backs up her belief that she is a top contender this year.

"Grass definitely suits my game. With the power and the big first serve I feel I can get a good start on the point," she said.

Since winning Wimbledon as a 17-year-old, Sharapova has worked on the physical aspect of her game and gone from what she described as "a little skinny girl the size of spaghetti" to a more powerful-looking player.

"That's something that I've been working on for the last few years and I feel like I'm getting there. Year by year I feel stronger than last year so I've definitely made progress," said Sharapova, who won the U.S. Open last year.

2007-06-14T23:44:00.000-07:00

Maria Sharapova advance in Istanbul Cup

Maria has scored her 1st win on clay of 2007 today as she defeated #95 Tsvetana Pironkova of Bulgaria 6-4 7-6 (1) in 2 hours and 15 minutes to advance to the quarters at the Istanbul Cup.

Pironkova broke Maria in the 1st set to lead 3-1, the Maria went on a roll by taking the next 4 games and just dropped 1 more game as she took the set 6-4.

Maria broke in the 1st game of the 2nd set but Pironkova broke Maria's serve in the 8th game and the set was finally decided on a tie-break which Maria won 7-1.

In the quarters to be played on Thursday, Maria will play either #7 seed Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland or Romina Oprandi of Italy, Maria hasn't played either player before.

2007-06-01T10:24:00.001-07:00

Maria Sharapova advance in Istanbul Cup

Maria has scored her 1st win on clay of 2007 today as she defeated #95 Tsvetana Pironkova of Bulgaria 6-4 7-6 (1) in 2 hours and 15 minutes to advance to the quarters at the Istanbul Cup.

Pironkova broke Maria in the 1st set to lead 3-1, the Maria went on a roll by taking the next 4 games and just dropped 1 more game as she took the set 6-4.Maria broke in the 1st game of the 2nd set but Pironkova broke Maria's serve in the 8th game and the set was finally decided on a tie-break which Maria won 7-1.

In the quarters to be played on Thursday, Maria will play either #7 seed Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland or Romina Oprandi of Italy, Maria hasn't played either player before.

2007-05-27T10:24:00.001-07:00

Sharapova and Dolce Vamp for Canon

Canon will break two spots with tennis star Maria Sharapova tonight to support the PowerShot SD750 Digital ELPH camera.

The spots, “Banter” and “Dolce,” are part of a larger campaign that also includes print, Internet and live activation at the French Open. Dentsu America, New York, is the lead agency. The spots were directed by Joe Pytka.

The two spots follow Sharapova as she attempts to take photos of her Pomeranian dog, Dolce, including chasing the pooch around a tennis court, her house and her pool. The spots will break separately during 24, American Idol and on the MTV Music Awards. They will air together during the NBA Finals and other cable shows. Print will hit newsstands in early June in publications including Entertainment Weekly, People and Wired.“This campaign shows a fun side of Maria and showcases how much she enjoys using her Canon PowerShot digital camera to capture all her favorite moments,” Mike Wilson, chief creative officer at Dentsu America, said in a statement.

Canon USA, Lake Success, N.Y., spends about $25 million on media behind PowerShot, per TNS. The company is in the third year of a three-year, $6 million deal it signed with Sharapova in 2004. Max Eisenbud at IMG, Cleveland, is Sharapova’s agent.

2007-04-20T06:00:00.000-07:00

Maria Sharapova signed on to play in the WTT Pro League
Two of the world's most exciting players are returning to World TeamTennis action this summer. Maria Sharapova and Serena Williams have signed on to play in the WTT Pro League presented by Advanta which begins July 5.
Sharapova, currently ranked No. 2 in the world, will play for the Newport Beach Breakers on Monday, July 16, when they host the Kansas City Explorers. Sharapova previously played three seasons for the Breakers from 2003-2005. She made her WTT debut as a 15-year-old in 2002 for the Delaware Smash. Former World No. 1 Serena Williams returns to World TeamTennis for the first time since her WTT debut in 2000. This summer Williams will play for the St. Louis Aces on Monday, July 23, when they host the New York Sportimes.The League also announced that the world's top-ranked doubles team of Bob and Mike Bryan have added another WTT match to their schedule. The Bryans, who play for the Kansas City Explorers, will make an appearance in Springfield on Sunday, July 15.

Sharapova and Williams join a star-studded list for 2007 WTT action including Venus Williams, Pete Sampras, Anna Kournikova, John McEnroe, and Mike and Bob Bryan. The regular season runs July 5 through July 25 with 77 matches in 11 markets.

"Making of Maria"

2007-04-12T11:47:00.001-07:00

2007-04-03T02:04:00.000-07:00

Sharapova to miss Fed Cup debut

World number two Maria Sharapova will not make her Fed Cup debut for Russia later this month because of shoulder and hamstring injuries. The 19-year-old had been set to represent Russia for the first time in the first-round tie against Spain on 21-22 April in Moscow. "I am especially bummed about the Fed Cup," Sharapova told her website. "I was looking forward to playing in Moscow and representing my country in a team environment for the first time." Sharapova, who has also been forced to withdraw from next week's Family Circle Cup in Charleston, moved to the USA aged nine and has never played for Russia. "I will be speaking with the Russian Federation soon about future matches," she said. Sharapova added: "My doctors are confident that, with five or six weeks of rest, I will be ready for the next events."

2007-03-26T10:26:00.001-07:00

Sharapova sends Venus out in revenge win

Maria Sharapova rallied to avenge a Wimbledon defeat with a three-set victory over Venus Williams, but she had to wait another day to see if she'll get a similar chance against Serena Williams.
Top-seeded Sharapova beat Venus Williams 2-6, 6-2, 7-5 to reach the fourth round of the 6.9 million-dollar WTA and ATP Masters Series tournament here.

Sharapova, who lost to Venus Williams in their last meeting - in the 2005 Wimbledon semi-finals - emerged with the victory in a hard-fought match yesterday in which the windy conditions contributed to the 50 unforced errors and 12 double faults by Williams and 35 unforced errors and 13 double faults by Sharapova.After going up 2-0 in the opening set Sharapova surrendered the next six games. She responded in kind in the second set to force the decider, which ended when Williams fired long.

Sharapova was next due to face either Australian Open champion Serena Williams or Czech Lucie Safarova.

But the scheduled night match between 13th-seeded Serena and Safarova was postponed until today when rain that has plagued the tournament struck again, leaving Sharapova to wait and see if she'll get a chance to avenge her Australian open finals rout.

Sharapova was joined in the fourth round by second-seeded Belgian Justine Henin, No. 3 Svetlana Kuznetsova and No. 4 Kim Clijsters of belgium, while fifth-seeded Swiss Martina Hingis exited in the third round for the second straight year.

2007-03-20T09:40:00.000-07:00

Williams sisters and Sharapova might meet early at Sony Open
Maria Sharapova will be the topseed after all as the organizers of the Sony Ericsson Open decided to use the rankings before Indian Wells. Yet last year they used the ones after the Pacific Life Open.

Maria Sharapova and The Williams sisters are all packed into the same explosive eighth of the draw announced Monday.
That means three of the biggest names in women's tennis are on a collision course by the fourth round.

The young Russian who is going to turn 20 on April 19th has a first round bye and then will either meet Chan, Yung-Jan from Taipei or Llagostera Vives, Nuria from Spain for a berth in the 3rd round. She has never played Chan before, but leads the H2H against Llagostera Vives 2-0.

2007-03-10T09:12:00.000-08:00

Sharapova struggles to 2nd-round victory

Top-ranked Maria Sharapova opened her title defense in the Pacific Life Open with a 7-6 (5), 6-4 victory over Michaella Krajicek on Friday night in a second-round match at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden.
Sharapova, who had a first-round bye, had not played a match since straining her left hamstring in Tokyo in early February. The effects of the layoff were obvious in her 1-hour, 44-minute struggle against Krajicek, the 18-year-old sister of former Wimbledon champion Richard Krajicek.

Sharapova had 10 double-faults and 50 unforced errors and lost service four times. She finally secured the win on her fourth match point when Krajicek's backhand from the baseline hit the top of the net and fell on her side of the court.

Sharapova, the 15th player to be No. 1 on the WTA Tour, improved to 9-2 on the year and will face Nathalie Dechy of France in the third round.

2007-03-10T08:23:00.000-08:00

Deal or No Deal

Ever thought of walking onto a television stage set and walking away with a cool million? With this game you are only one briefcase away from doing just that. Hosted by Howie Mandel and with 26 beautiful models the show which premiered on December 19, 2005 will now begin showing on Wednesdays this season.

The harrowing ride begins for contestants when they choose a briefcase and then have to select six to be opened. Each of the 26 briefcases hold amounts from $.01 to $1,000,000. The hope of the contestant is that they have the one case that holds the million dollars. As the contestant begins to open cases, they pray that those which are opened are on the left side of the board so that when the banker comes back with a buyout bid amount it will be high. Once the larger amounts start to be removed from the board the banker plays the odds and works out the percentage chance that the contestant holds a case with a high dollar value in it.

Once the first six cases have been opened the banker plugs some numbers into his computer and decides on a buyout bid, calling Howie to inform him. While the contestant waits and wrings their hands or stomps their feet, Howie draws the moment out. Once he gives them the offer he opens a clear box on the table in front of the them where a big red button awaits their decision and asks the contestant: "Deal or No Deal?"

It would be unusual for someone to make a deal this early in the game so on to the next round. The contestant closes the box and says "No Deal" and now must open 5 more cases. This continues on until the contestant is opening one case at a time and waiting for the bankers buyout bid with every case opened. Some contestants do become very practical and figure that the offer is more than they would make in several years working so they finally hit the button and say "Deal".

In Episode 24 more than one deal was struck. Due to the contestants profession both Howie and The Banker put on clown noses. During the show and all the excitement that went with it, the contestant took a moment to ask his girlfriend to marry him. Howie then posed the question "Deal or No Deal" to her to which she replied, "Deal". At the end of the hour the contestant finally took a deal for $301,000. Good thing since his chosen case, number 11, only held $25. This is just one of the many everyday average people who have walked away from the show with a great deal.

Deal or No Deal has made an instant impact on the country and keeps us glued to the TV to see whether the right case was chosen or the contestant can make a better deal. NBC seems to have a hit with this suspenseful show, and it constantly rates in the top ten shows each week.

2007-03-01T10:15:00.000-08:00

Sharapova Named UN Goodwill Ambassador

The United Nations development aid agency has appointed tennis star Maria Sharapova as a goodwill ambassador. From U.N. headquarters, VOA's Peter Heinlein reports Ms. Sharapova made a cash donation to help with Chernobyl recovery projects.

Maria Sharapova has come a long way in her 19 years. Now she wants to go back to her roots.

The world's top-ranked women's tennis player signed a letter Wednesday committing herself to promoting United Nations aid programs as a celebrity goodwill ambassador.

The teenage tennis sensation has lived in the United States for most of her life. But she was born in Soviet Siberia in 1987, and remains a Russian citizen. Her parents had moved to Siberia to escape the fallout from the Chernobyl nuclear accident a year earlier, near their home in what is now Belarus. Her grandmother still lives in the Belarus town of Gomel, just across the Ukrainian border from Chernobyl.

She said one of her reasons for wanting to become a goodwill ambassador is her concern for the forgotten victims of Chernobyl.

"I was born in Siberia and I moved from Siberia when I was two years old because of Chernobyl, because both of my parents thought for my safety and the radiation that it was not right for me to live there," she said. "So that's why it means so much to me to be part of project because I was part of it as well."

Sharapova handed a check for $100,000 to U.N. Development Program official Ad Melkert. She says the money will be used to help residents in and around Chernobyl.

"This money is going to go toward computer centers in the affected areas of Chernobyl," she said. "They're going to go to sports centers, family hospitals. Places like that."

The UNDP's Melkert said Sharapova's presence will help to shine a spotlight on efforts to help the world poorest.

"We struggle with the knowledge that one billion people don't even have access to a glass of drinkable water, and two billion people do not have access to electricity, and therefore we must work with the private sector, with foundations, with individuals," she said.

Like any teenager, Sharapova giggled when she was introduced to a packed news conference as the U.N.'s newest celebrity goodwill ambassador. Her first reaction was an expression of wonder at her surroundings.

"This is my first time here to this headquarters, and I just got to see all the different settings you see on TV, so it's pretty cool to sit in a chair and feel official for a little bit," she said.

As a UNDP goodwill ambassador, Sharapova joins several other celebrity envoys. Others include Norway's Crown Prince Haakon Magnus, Japanese actress Misako Konno, along with three soccer stars, Ronaldo of Brazil, Zinedine Zidane of France, and Didier Drogba of Ivory Coast.

For her services, the world's highest paid female athlete will earn a salary of $1 a year.

2007-02-19T09:40:00.000-08:00

Sharapova, Serena withdraw from Dubai

Maria Sharapova and Serena Williams both withdrew Friday from next week's WTA Dubai Duty Free Women's Open Tennis Tournament, citing ailments.

Williams, who trounced Sharapova on Jan. 27 to win the Australian Open for her eighth Grand Slam title, has battled the flu in recent days.The illness forced her to opt out of this week's Bangalore Open in India.

Sharapova has been hampered by a hamstring injury.

"I'm very disappointed to have to withdraw," Sharapova said in a statement. "The hamstring that I injured in Tokyo is not yet healed. I tried everything possible to be in condition to play, but unfortunately I'm not ready. I'm looking forward to continuing to recover as quickly as possible so that I can get back on the court competing."

2007-02-05T03:23:00.000-08:00

Sharapova enters Family Circle Cup

Maria Sharapova, the most recognizable and highest paid female athlete in the world, has officially entered the 2007 Family Circle Cup. At only nineteen years old, this two-time Grand Slam champion returns to Charleston with stellar career marks including 15 singles titles, a 239-56 win-loss record and over $9 million in winnings.

Yesterday she regained the World No. 1 ranking, marking the 8th week in her career that she has held the top spot in women’s professional tennis. Since computer rankings were started in 1973, only 15 women have achieved the status of World No. 1 on the women’s professional tennis tour.
This year, the Family Circle Cup is proud to feature four members of that elite club who will be joining a host of other top players battling for one of the most coveted trophies in women’s tennis. With the addition of World No. 1 Maria Sharapova, this year’s Family Circle Cup player field now boasts four of the top five players in the world including Justine Henin-Hardenne, Amélie Mauresmo and Svetlana Kuznetsova. The 2007 Family Circle Cup is scheduled for April 7th-15th at the Family Circle Tennis Center in Charleston, South Carolina.

“Maria is one of the most sought-after players on the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour, and her commitment to play this event takes the Family Circle Cup to a whole new level,” commented Robin Reynolds, Family Circle Cup Tournament Director. “Not only is she the world’s top female player, but Maria is also a celebrity that transcends tennis, and we are very pleased that she’ll be here in April.”

“I have very pleasant memories of my trip to Charleston four years ago and I’m looking forward to playing in the tournament and enjoying some time in the city,” noted reigning US Open Champion / World No. 1 player Maria Sharapova. “The Family Circle Cup has a great reputation on the Tour, especially with the players, so I’m excited to be coming back and starting my clay court season at such a wonderful event.”

Maria Sharapova first competed in the Family Circle Cup as a World No. 167 ranked qualifier in 2003 where she reached the first round of the main draw. Her first Sony Ericsson WTA Tour victory came later that year at the Japan Open, then another in Quebec City, which propelled her through the rankings to finish at No. 32 in the world.

Sharapova thrust herself onto a world stage in 2004 when she claimed her first major title as the second youngest ladies champion in the open era at Wimbledon, then won the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour Championships leading to a year-end career-high No. 4 ranking. She also received two major awards that year including the WTA Tour’s “Player of the Year” and “Most Improved Player of the Year”.

She repeated as the World’s No. 4 player in 2005 by reaching the quarterfinals or better in all 15 events in which she competed (including all four Grand Slams), winning three finals including her first Tier I title at Tokyo (Pan Pacific), reaching the semifinals of the Tour Championships, and becoming the 15th player in history to appear at the No. 1 spot which she held for a total of 7 weeks that year.

Sharapova’s best year to date came in 2006 as she earned a year-end World No. 2 ranking by reaching the semifinals or better in 13 of 15 starts, claiming 5 titles including three Tier I events and her second major at the US Open, and completed a 19-match win streak with a semifinal appearance at the Tour Championships. Her 59 match wins (second best in 2006) helped her to surpass the 200 career victory mark as she became the highest-earning Russian in Tour history, in addition to being named the Whirlpool “6th Sense Player of the Year”.

2007-01-27T11:51:00.000-08:00

Williams crushes Sharapova to take third Australian Open

Unseeded Serena Williams swatted aside top seed and world number one Maria Sharapova 6-1, 6-2 in the Australian Open final to win her eighth Grand Slam.

Sharapova had no answer to Williams' booming serve and blistering returns as the American completed a fairytale return from injury with a third Australian title to join her 2003 and 2005 trophies.

Coming into the final as the underdog, the 25-year-old made a mockery of her world ranking of 81 to humiliate Sharapova and become the first unseeded player since 1978 to claim the Australian title.

With the roof of the Rod Laver Arena closed because of drizzle, the early signs were good for Williams, as it was during her previous victories at the tournament.

Serving first, she signalled her intentions when she fired down an ace to take the opening game.

The American was a picture of steely intent, showing none of the lapses in concentration that forced her to fight back from a set down twice in the tournament.

She drew first blood with a break in the second game when the serving woes that have dogged Sharapova's campaign continued and she double faulted twice to put the American ahead.

Williams punished Sharapova's tentative serve with sizzling returns and she stunned the Russian with another break to go up 4-0 after just 14 minutes,

Sharapova desperately sought a way back into the game and dug deep to take Williams to break point in the fifth game, only for her opponent to ease back on the throttle and bamboozle her with a looping drop shot and take the game.

The shell-shocked Russian accidentally hit a ball directly at her opponent in the next, when she finally managed to defend her serve, but only managed to fire up Williams further.

Williams served out the set after 26 minutes and Sharapova's woes continued when she double faulted to open the second.

The American continued to dominate the world number one, breaking Sharapova in the first game then holding her own serve with an ace.

Any doubts about her fitness were quickly dispelled as she leapt around the court, changing directions to reach return and charging to the net.

It was 10 games and 43 minutes into the match before Sharapova served an ace and less than 50 percent of her first serves were successful.

She clung on to defend her serve twice in the second set but could do little against the Williams onslaught, muttering "too good" to herself after another rocket-powered return from her opponent.

Williams served out the match and dropped to the ground in relief then bowed to the cheering crowd after one of the most lopsided finals in recent memory.

2007-01-17T11:21:00.000-08:00

Fashion icon Sharapova to reveal new outfit

The 19-year-old world number two earned an estimated 22 million dollars in endorsements last year, including the promotion of fashion products, and is a regular magazine covergirl, contracted to IMG Models since 2003

What she wears is watched as closely as how she plays.

Last year she set the Open on fire with her power blue baby doll nightie look, which became a must-have fashion accessory, and she said more was in store this week.

"Fashion-wise, I'm not doing baby doll any more. Baby doll has gone out the window," she said.

Asked what she had planned, she said: "It's a pretty classy dress. It's like a lemon chiffon colour.

"Bottom of the dress, it's like a little high waisted. I tend to pay a lot of attention to detail.

"There's a little corset detail in the back, there's a bow. My warm-up (outfit) is also really cute. You got to see it."

Earlier this month Sharapova denied she was better known for her looks than her tennis, pointing to her two Grand Slams.

"I'm happy with the way my career is going at the moment," she said. "I'm working hard on my game and I can hardly say that for the modelling.

"I have won two Slam tournaments -- I think it's all a matter of perception and opinion. I have been a tennis player since I was four years old."

Another to watch in the fashion stakes this week will be Serena Williams, known for taking on-court fashion to places others fear to tread.

At the 2002 US Open she sported a now infamous black lycra catsuit, while at the Australian Open in 2005 she unveiled a lime-green and white costume that included knee-high spaceboots with a detachable leg section that could be removed before play commenced.

Last year she confined herself to a mint-green pleated skirt and regulation-issue tanktop.

2007-01-12T11:42:00.000-08:00

Maria on this months Teen Vogue Cover

Check out TeenVogue.com for an exclusive video of Maria behind the scenes at the TeenVogue cover shoot.

Click here to view the footage

And it's getting even better. Once you subscripe to Teen Vogue this month, you will receive a free, signed poster of Maria. Purchase now at http://www.teenvogue.com !

2007-01-05T09:46:00.000-08:00

A Website to track Maria’s New Year Resolutions

In a new campaign to get people working out (as well as buy shoes), Nike has launched NikePlus.com, a new website that will track runners' New Year’s resolutions and challenges from friends. If they fail to keep their commitment, selected runners will face consequences and have to do weird things that their friends decided they will do before hand. But the big push here is from LeBron James and tennis star Maria Sharapova.

During the month of January, the two athletes will try to run more miles than the other. If Sharapova loses, she will have to sit behind James during a game and be his water girl. If James loses, however, he will have to be a ball boy at one Sharapova’s matches. The contest ends on January 31 and you can track their progress at NikePlus.com.

2007-01-02T10:09:00.000-08:00

Top Ten things Maria is not good at--

1. Cooking, actually I can make cookies and they are good! but that's about where it ends.

2. Sprints, the fact that I hate them doesn't really help me!

3. Hiding my emotions

4. Icing! trainers would know what I'm talking about

5. Saying no when it comes to buying shoes

6. Packing less, simply doesn't exist in my vocabulary

7. Following someone's directions, cause they make way too many mistakes, no excuses though

8. Figuring out electronics, why can't things be easy to operate?

9. Saying 'you're right'

10. Being patient, fine i'll work on it!

2006-12-26T12:23:00.000-08:00

Top Ten things Maria is good at--

1. Packing - lots of experience helps.

2. Manipulating people - at least I try haha

3. Spying - I should have been Sherlock Holmes but whimped out at the last second.

4. Stealing food from Mike's plate - that's cause he eats a lot of burgers

5. saying 'no'- esp to my agent.

6. Coming up with excuses - oh this is soo fun!

7. Being creative especially when it comes to design.

8. Being on time.

9. Making my friends laugh.

10. Singing - I can sing Cher really well.

Whirlpool Player Of the Year

2006-11-10T09:02:00.001-08:00

Maria Sharapova has been named the second annual winner of the Whirlpool 6th sense Player of the Year, announced Thursday at the season-ending 2006 Sony Ericsson Championships.

The award, which honors the player who has demonstrated the most 6th sense intuition over the course of the year, was presented to Sharapova by Dino Olivetti, brand director of Whirlpool Europe.

Click read more to view the video

Maria was one of the three world's top players short-listed for the award via an online competition organised by Whirlpool, Premier Sponsor of the Tour.

The three finalists chosen were Martina Hingis, Maria Sharapova and Amélie Mauresmo. From the finalists, Maria was chosen to receive the Award by an expert panel and the online voters from across Europe. The panel consisted of former World No. 1 and 14 time Grand Slam title winner – Arantxa Sanchez; Co-President of the International Tennis Writers

"I'm thrilled to have won the Whirlpool 6th sense Player of the Year award for 2006," Sharapova said. "It completes a great year for me and it is an honor to win such an award against the world's best players. The significance of intuition in my game is that I try to anticipate my opponent so I can react faster and with greater precision. As the game gets faster and the competition stronger, intuition becomes even more important."

"Maria has had a fantastic season and I am delighted that our consumers across Europe along with the judging panel have recognized her outstanding abilities," said Giuseppe Perucchetti, vice president of brand marketing at Whirlpool Europe.

2006-11-08T09:06:00.000-08:00

Russia's Sharapova set to make Fed Cup debut in April

Maria Sharapova will make her long-awaited Fed Cup debut for Russia against Spain in their World Group first-round tie in April, Russia's tennis chief said on Tuesday.

The U.S. Open champion will be joined by Nadia Petrova, Svetlana Kuznetsova and Elena Dementieva, forming a powerful Russian line-up for the two-day tie in Moscow on April 21-22.

"Yes, all four of our girls have agreed to play against Spain," president of the Russian tennis federation Shamil Tarpishchev, who is also their Fed Cup captain, told Reuters.

"Of course, anything can happen between now and next April but barring any injuries, they all will be in the team."

All four Russians are now in Madrid, taking part in the season-ending WTA Championships, which began on Tuesday.

World number two Sharapova is riding on a three-tournament winning streak after her triumphs at the U.S. Open, Linz and Zurich and has a good chance of clinching the number one spot.

There have always been doubts in the Russian media over whether Sharapova would ever play for her country, but the Florida-based teenager made herself available for Russia's Fed Cup team last month.

"I'm really excited to make my first appearance in the Fed Cup for my country and it is great to be playing the tie in Moscow," the 19-year-old said on her Web site.

"Hopefully, myself and the team will put up a strong showing against Spain, who have a good team."

Kuznetsova, Petrova and Dementieva are all in the world's top eight, occupying the fourth, fifth and eighth spots respectively.

Russia will try to regain the Fed Cup title they won in 2004 and 2005. This year they lost to Belgium in the quarter-finals.

Maria Sharapova - CNN Interview

2006-11-02T08:46:00.001-08:00