Europe : Days before ‘The Championships’ at Wimbledon, Maria Sharapova served up an ace on the catwalk with the unveiling of the Sony Ericsson Maria Sharapova Design Collection.

Starting the tennis season with a dash of glamour and style, the collection was unveiled by Sony Ericsson and one of the world’s most famous tennis players, Maria Sharapova, to a select audience of international lifestyle journalists flown into London for the special occasion.

Maria Sharapova is Sony Ericsson’s first global brand ambassador. The four year agreement was sealed in January 2008 and the Maria Sharapova Design Collection is the first design collaboration campaign to be announced.

“Working on this collection was an opportunity that I could not turn down,” said Maria Sharapova at the unveiling. “Sony Ericsson helped me create a collection of mobile phone accessories that I know people will use. And I wanted to add my touch to each item. People want style, fashion and glamour, and with this collection I know that they’ll have it.

I am looking forward to using the collection with my Sony Ericsson T303 which is equally as stylish and great to listen to music on when I exercise and when I like to relax after a match.”

Some of London’s up and coming faces on the catwalk modelled the season’s fashion look by young urban designers to compliment the Maria Sharapova Design Collection. Louise Roe, stylist and fashion expert, hosted the show and presented the Sony Ericsson mobile phone accessories to leading lifestyle media writers from around the world. The Maria Sharapova Design Collection consists of the IDC-31 Courtside Case, the compact IDC-32 Exercise Case, the IDC-33 Party Bag and the IDC-34 Travel Wallet. The Design Collection is inspired by Maria Sharapova’s own global lifestyle, and the latest fashion trends.

Speaking at the fashion show, Sony Ericsson Designer Lykke Tarsbol said: “It was a pleasure working with Maria on the design of this collection. We wanted to create a collection that represented her life on and off the court. We worked closely to ensure that every item was designed with her and for her.”

As a leading personality not just on the tennis court, but also in the world of style and fashion, Maria Sharapova brought to the project a wealth of fashion knowledge and glamour, by working closely with Sony Ericsson’s design team to create an aspirational collection of accessories.

The Maria Sharapova Design Collection will be available in all markets in Q3.