By Liza Horan

New York—The campaign against global poverty just got glam. The beautiful face that graced last month's cover of Teen Vogue was just appointed a Goodwill Ambassador to the United National Development Programme. Maria Sharapova's style has always been backed by substance, but this move catapults her—and the game—into a new light. Or, as the UNDP puts it, an "elite group."

By tennis standards, Maria Sharapova joined an "elite group" at age 9 when she got a full scholarship to the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy, and again when she signed her initial endorsement deal with Nike by age 11.

Her membership with another "elite group" came in 2004 when she became the third youngest woman to win The Championships at Wimbledon. She topped lots of people in another "elite group" the first time Forbes named her as the highest earner among female athletes (she's still listed as such).

But her ability to transcend tennis has been solidified yesterday with the announcement that she is a Goodwill Ambassador for the United National Development Programme. As the UN statement says, "Maria Sharapova joins an elite group...which includes soccer stars Ronaldo of Brazil, Zinédine Zidane of France, and newly appointed Didier Drogba of Cote d’Ivoire; Japanese actress Misako Konno; and Crown Prince Haakon Magnus of Norway."

[Roger Federer is a Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF.]

In her role as Goodwill Ambassador, which was announced on Wednesday at the United Nations, Sharapova will rally support for the global campaign against poverty. Her first step was donating $100,000 from her namesake foundation to youth efforts in areas affected by the Chernobyl disaster of 1986.

“My first step is to focus on the Chernobyl-affected region, where my family has roots,” Sharapova said at the UNDP press conference. “Today it is poverty and lack of opportunities that pose the greatest threat for young people in the Chernobyl region.”

The funds will be split among eight youth organizations aimed at improving computer access, promoting ecological awareness, and restoring sports facilities and hospitals in Russia, Belarus and Ukraine.

"Sharapova’s work with UNDP will include promoting international efforts to achieve the Millennium Development Goals...(which) are clear, time-bound targets for achieving measurable improvements in the lives of the world’s poorest people," says a statement from the UNDP. The Millenium Development Goals were adopted by 189 countries in 2000.

This new position for Sharapova signals many great things:
- Another organization outside of tennis will be promoting one of the game's stars
- Sharapova continues to put substance behind her image
- Players who are great role models do help the game's presence in mainstream culture

All of this, not to mention how the lives of kids in the rural communities surrounding Chernobyl will be improved through her foundation's financial gift.