ROGERS CUP 2011 Update: Maria Sharapova highest-paid female athlete in world for seventh straight year

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Maria Sharapova may not have won a grand slam title since 2008, but the Russian tennis player remains unchallenged as the world's highest-paid woman in professional sports.

For the seventh straight year, Sharapova topped the annual list provided by Forbes magazine, despite failing to add to her three Grand Slam titles, although she did make the Wimbledon final in July.

Sharapova's earnings, mostly off-court endorsements, were estimated at $25 million US, twice as much as her nearest rival, Denmark's Caroline Wozniacki, the current women's world No. 1.

American racing driver Danica Patrick was third with $12 million, followed by tennis players Venus Williams, Belgium's Kim Clijsters and Serena Williams.

Seven of the top nine female earners were tennis players, including China's Li Na, who made $8 million last year but was expected to challenge Sharapova for the top spot after her breakthrough win at the French Open.

Top 10 women earners:

1. Maria Sharapova, $25 million (Russia, tennis)

2. Caroline Wozniacki, $12.5 million (Denmark, tennis)

3. Danica Patrick, $12 million (U.S., auto racing)

4. Venus Williams, $11.5 million (U.S., tennis)

5. Kim Clijsters, $11 million (Belgium, tennis)

6. Serena Williams, $10.5 million (U.S., tennis)

7. Kim Yuna, $10 million (figure skating, South Korea)

8. Li Na, $8 million (China, tennis)

9. Ana Ivanovic, $6 million (Serbia, tennis)

10. Paula Creamer, $5.5 million (U.S., golf)

Wildcards announced for Rogers Cup presented by National Bank

August 2, 2011, Toronto - Tennis Canada announced Tuesday the men’s and women’s wildcard entries into the singles main draw of Rogers Cup presented by National Bank in Montreal and Toronto. Canadians Philip Bester (Vancouver), Erik Chvojka (Kirkland, Ontario) and Vasek Pospisil (Vernon, British Columbia) will see main draw action in Montreal while Eugenie Bouchard (Westmount, Quebec), Stephanie Dubois (Laval, Quebec) and Aleksandra Wozniak (Blainville, Quebec) will play in Toronto. The fourth main draw wildcard for Rogers Cup in Montreal will go to rising Australian star Bernard Tomic.

Canada’s top-ranked female singles player Rebecca Marino (Vancouver) has also gained direct entry into the main draw. The world No. 41 player was moved up when Romania’s Alexandra Dulgheru withdrew from the tournament. It will be Marino’s first Rogers Cup main draw appearance. Additionally, qualifying wild cards have been determined bringing the total number of Canadians participating at the home events to 15.

“I’m so happy to have moved up into the main draw based on the merit of my own ranking,” said Marino. “It also means that an extra spot can go to one of my fellow Canadian females which is amazing for the fans and Canadian tennis. I’m so excited to play in my first Rogers Cup main draw. To get that chance to play on this big stage in front of a supportive home crowd is something I truly can’t wait for.”

For the men, Bester, 22, has had a solid year reaching a career-high ranking of No. 229 after a Futures tournament victory in Chico, California in June. He was also the hero for Canada’s Davis Cup team in July, winning the fifth and deciding match versus Ecuador to send the team to the World Group playoffs for the first time since 2005.

Chvojka, 24, will be making his first Rogers Cup main draw appearance after two previous qualifying wildcard opportunities. He currently sits at a career-high ranking of No. 315 after reaching four Futures finals in 2011 including last week at the inaugural Saskatoon Futures in Saskatchewan.

Pospisil, 21, is coming off of a championship at the Saskatoon Futures and will be playing the $100,000 Vancouver Challenger this week in his home province. Ranked No. 186 on the ATP World Tour rankings, Pospisil has moved up more than 150 spots since the start of the year reaching the quarter-finals or better at six different Challenger events in 2011.

Touted as one of the next generation up-and-comers, 18-year-old Tomic reached his first Grand Slam quarter-final at Wimbledon as a qualifier in June, defeating world No. 5 Robin Soderling en route. Currently ranked No. 71, Tomic started the year at No. 209 on the ATP World Tour rankings.

On the women’s side, 17-year-old Bouchard has had a phenomenal year capturing her first two professional Challenger titles, playing Fed Cup for the first time, capturing the Junior Wimbledon doubles crown and winning her first WTA main draw match last week at Washington. She is currently ranked No. 6 in the world on the ITF Junior Rankings.

Dubois, 24, has been on a hot streak since April, capturing two Challenger titles at Charlottesville and Granby, reaching the second round at Wimbledon after advancing through qualifying and making her first WTA quarter-final appearance in six years at Washington last week. She has moved up to No. 107 on the WTA singles rankings.

Former world No. 21, Wozniak, 23, is still working her way back from extended absences due to injury. She qualified for both Roland Garros and Wimbledon in 2011, reaching the second round in Paris before falling to top-seed Caroline Wozniacki. She also made a much-welcome return to Canada’s Fed Cup team in February, winning one match in their loss versus Serbia.

The wildcards were also decided for the Rogers Cup presented by National Bank qualifying tournament that takes place August 6-7 at Rexall Centre and Stade Uniprix. Athletes granted qualifying wildcards in Montreal are Frank Dancevic (Niagara Falls, Ontario), Steven Diez (Toronto), Pierre-Ludovic Duclos (Sainte Foy, Quebec) and Olympic gold medallist Fernando Gonzalez.

For the women in Toronto, Gabriela Dabrowski (Ottawa), Heidi El-Tabakh (Toronto), Sharon Fichman (Toronto) and Marie-Eve Pelletier (Repentigny, Quebec) will take their crack at making it to the big show. One additional wildcard will be determined via a pre-qualifying tournament involving Canadians Dominique Harmath, Kimberly-Ann Surin, Brittany Wowchuk and Carol Zhao, with the final female entrant to be confirmed at a later date.

The virtually combined official draw for Rogers Cup presented by National Bank will take place at Uniprix Stadium and Rexall Centre respectively on Friday, August 5 at 4:00 p.m.

Tickets are available at www.rogerscup.com.

Marion Bartoli arrives in Toronto for Rogers Cup

The WTA players are making their way to Toronto and gearing up for Rogers Cup presented by National Bank! The first Top 10 player to arrive is World No. 9 Marion Bartoli, and she seems glad to be back.

"I'm really excited to be back in Toronto. Had a nice day yesterday at the Eaton Centre. I thought I should try to stop shopping after 4 bags already in my hands."

On Wednesday, Bartoli was in downtown Toronto meeting with employees at National Bank, signing autographs and promoting the exciting tournament featuring the Top 25 of 25 female tennis players.

Bartoli has had quite the last couple months leading up to Rogers Cup. As the top seed in Strasbourg in May, Bartoli was forced to retire with a thigh injury. She followed that up with a very strong showing at Roland Garros, reaching the Semi-Finals as an 11-seed. In June, Bartoli won her first title of the year at Eastbourne, her first title of the year and sixth of her career. After that came another strong showing at a Grand Slam, reaching the Quarter-Finals at Wimbledon, defeating Serena Williams in the fourth round. Bartoli and Williams met again in the finals at Stanford, with Williams topping the Frenchwoman the second time around.

You can catch Bartoli and the rest of the stars of the WTA at Rogers Cup presented by National Bank. The virtually combined official draw will take place on Friday, August 5 at Uniprix Stadium (Montreal) and Rexall Centre (Toronto) from 4:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. Watch live on rogerscup.com

Tickets for Rogers Cup presented by National Bank start as low as $20. Session seats, group offers, packages and executive suite opportunities are still available. Inventory for championship weekend and Rogers Legends Cup is limited. For more information and to purchase tickets visit rogerscup.com or call 1-877-2TENNIS (Toronto) or 1-855-TENNIS0 (Montreal).