It has been a big year for women in sports. Here's a list of some of the most powerful women in sports.

1. Maria Sharapova

The 18-year-old budding tennis star, who hails from Russia and won Wimbledon last year, sits atop the female athlete income rankings, with annual earnings¹ estimated at $18-23 million. Aside from her tournament winnings, the 6-foot-2 blonde has a slew² of corporate³ endorsements⁴, including Nike, Canon cameras and Motorola phones.

2. Sheila Johnson

The 56-year-old businesswoman/philanthropist, who co-founded Black Entertainment Television with her ex-husband, bought stakes in the Washington Mystics of the WNBA, the Washington Wizards of the NBA and the Washington Capitals of the NHL in May. Johnson is reportedly the first African-American woman billionaire.

3. Annika Sorenstam

The 35-year-old native of Sweden has put a lot of distance between herself and the rest of the women's golf world, winning 10 of the 20 tournaments she entered this year, including two majors.

Her career tournament earnings surpassed $18 million in 2005, while no other woman golfer has even reached $11 million. She won her eighth LPGA player of the year award, tops in the tour's history.

4. Venus and Serena Williams

Although the Williams duo (Venus is 25 and Serena is 24) no longer dominate the sport as they did at the beginning of the decade, they each won a major event this year, with Serena taking the Australian Open and Venus winning Wimbledon.

5. Michelle Wie

The 16-year-old has already gained estimated $10 million in annual income from endorsements with Nike and Sony put her ahead of Sorenstam. Yet Wie is still waiting to win her first pro⁵ tournament. Her ultimate goal is to compete with men.