Wimbledon icon Maria Sharapova looks totally different five years after retiring
Wimbledon icon Maria Sharapova looks totally different five years after retiring
The former tennis superstar has left fans doing a double take after changing her iconic look in recent years
Sharapova shot to fame after winning Wimbledon as a teenager in 2004
Former tennis superstar Maria Sharapova has undergone a striking transformation since the glory days of her career, leaving a number of fans doing a double take as she was pictured at an event earlier this week.
The 38-year-old - who retired from professional tennis in 2020 - shot to fame as a fresh-faced teenager, when she beat top seed Serena Williams in the final at Wimbledon to lift the title aged just 17. She kept her iconic blonde locks throughout her career, but Sharapova now has a different look five years after leaving the sport behind.
Alongside her British businessman fiance Alex Gilkes, she attended the 60th anniversary celebration of the Hotel II Pellicano in Monte Argentario, Italy, on Monday, with photos from the event leading fans to brand her as "unrecognisable", having ditched her famous blonde hair for a more natural brunette look.
As a player, of course, Sharapova went on to win all four Grand Slam titles, following up her 2004 Wimbledon triumph with a US Open title two years later.
The Russian star then won the Australian Open in 2008 before tasting victory twice at Roland Garros as she won the French Open in both 2012 and 2014, having also reached the final in 2013.
In 2012, she won an Olympic silver medal at the London Games, losing to Williams in the women's singles final at SW19.
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As well as being the third-youngest woman to win a Wimbledon title, Sharapova also became the first Russian player to complete a career Grand Slam.
Her accolades weren't just confined to the tennis court, however, as her global profile soared and she was named as "the hottest athlete in the world" by Maxim for four consecutive years.
The tennis star was also named as one of the top 100 most powerful celebrities in the world by Forbes between 2005 and 2011, while she modelled for the likes of Sports Illustrated.
Sharapova and her fiance Alex Gilkes at the Hotel Il Pellicano 60th anniversary in Monte Argentario, Italy
However, Sharapova's illustrious career was marred n 2016 when she received a 15-month suspension - reduced from two years - for failing a drug test for meldonium. While she owned up to the mistake, she maintained that she had mistakenly taken the drug on her doctor's advice, without realising it had been banned by WADA.
Since leaving tennis behind, Sharapova - who has 4.6 million followers on Instagram - has made the most of her life in retirement, jetting off on luxury trips with Gilkes, who she revealed she was engaged to in December 2020.
In July 2022, the pair welcomed their first child, Theodore, together, with Sharapova's Instagram bio now proudly reading 'Mama'.
The fomer tennis icon - who boasts career winnings of £31 million - has also successfully transitioned into business, launching her confectionary brand Sugarpova and investing in sunscreen brand supergoop at the height of her career.
However, she has stepped up her business ambitions since retiring, investing in wellness brand therabody before joing the board of directors of top fashion brand Moncler in 2022.
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Sharapova also acts as an advisor to brands Naked Retail and Bright, while she has invested in several other companies including UFC, Tonal, Public.com, Moonpay and Clio Snacks.
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