Ivana Trump’s death has been ruled an accident and she died from injuries she sustained as a result of a fall, a medical examiner has ruled.
Ivana, 73, was found ‘unconscious and unresponsive’ at the bottom of the staircase in her Upper East Side townhouse on Thursday around 12.30pm. Her housekeeper found her as she arrived for work and called 911.
On Friday, a medical examiner determined that she died from blunt impact injuries as a result of a fall, according to TMZ.
Earlier on Friday, Eric Trump praised his mother as an ‘extraordinary woman’ who could ski faster than ‘any man down a mountain and still look like a supermodel’.
Eric, 38, told Fox Digital on Friday that he was working in nearby Trump Tower on Thursday and was able to arrive at his mother’s apartment within minutes of being called.
A visibly devastated Eric was pictured leaving his mother’s home on Thursday afternoon around 4.30pm alongside his wife, Lara, who called her death a ‘big loss’.
Lara told Fox News that Ivana was ‘an ‘incredible woman’ and that ‘New York City will never be the same without Ivana Trump.’
‘Not only was she known throughout her neighborhood but she was known throughout the city, she was an incredible socialite,’ she said.
She continued by saying ‘obviously a tough day for all of us in the family yesterday,’ but ‘we’ll all get through this’ and said you should ‘come together as a family’ when faced with situations like this.
Ivana’s youngest child Eric, 38, was seen outside his mother’s New York home on Thursday afternoon shortly after the news of her death broke. He issued a statement to DailyMail.com in the wake of Ivana’s passing, praising her as an ‘incredible woman’
Eric was joined by his wife Lara Trump, 39, who kept her face shielded with large sunglasses as she made her way out of her late mother-in-law’s home
Ivana Trump has passed away at the age of 73 of a suspected cardiac arrest after being found ‘unconscious and unresponsive at the bottom of a set of stairs in her apartment’. She was last pictured (above) on June 22 in New York City
Lara then spoke about Ivana’s life and said she was only able to escape communist Czechoslovakia because she was a ‘world class skier.’
This led her loving her life in America, and Lara said ‘no one that cherished this country more than she did, she truly appreciated America because she understood how lucky we were to be here.’
On meeting Donald Trump, who she’d eventually marry and have three kids with, Lara said they were ‘not only partners in life, but partners in business.’
Lara called Ivana an ‘incredible business woman,’ and said ‘she is credited with restoring glory to places like the Plaza Hotel’ and she ‘managed the casinos and hotels in Atlantic City.’
On her role in raising the family of three kids with Donald, Lara said ‘the title and role she cherished most was that of mom to my husband and brother-in-law and sister-in-law.’
She also offered a look into her parenting style, saying she was a ‘tough love type of mom.’
She made sure her children had ‘great manners,’ and ‘took how she grew up in Czechoslovakia and instilled it in them and gave them the strength and resiliency they all have.’
‘They have a tough dad,’ Lara said about their father Donald. ‘That’s a part of it, but they also had a tough mom.’
Lara also said Ivana was a role model for women everywhere, saying ‘so many women up until her death looked at her as a pillar of strength.’
She said the death was a ‘true loss everywhere for women because so many people looked up to her.’
Lara was then asked about her favorite memory of Ivana, and she started off by saying Ivana was ‘incredibly funny and witty, and nobody could tell a joke quite like her.’
‘I have incredible memories of some lunches that my husband and I had with her in New York,’ she said.
She also spoke on Ivana being known to everyone ‘it’s incredible because everywhere she went, everyone knew her, from the waitstaff to the managers of the restaurant.’
Lara chalked this up to Ivana being ‘so kind and thoughtful everywhere she went and she always seemed to make people smile and laugh.’
On a more somber note, Lara spoke of her own children, who ‘unfortunately won’t get to know her as they grow up, but we will cherish those memories forever.’
Ivana Trump is seen walking her dog Tiger on a stroll with an aide in New York City in 2020. Friends say she had remained highly cloistered during the COVID-19 pandemic, and feared falling ill
Donald and Ivana Trump married in 1977 and shared three children together before divorcing in 1992
It was reported by ABC News that Ivana was found ‘unconscious and unresponsive’ at the bottom of a set of stairs in her New York City townhouse (pictured)
She also talked about meeting Eric’s parents for the first time, saying ‘its always nerve-wracking to meet who might be your future in-laws when their names are Donald Trump and Ivana Trump.’
She said she was ‘very nervous’ to meet Ivana, but ‘her wit and her charm and her general character and sensibility really did put me at ease.’
‘She welcomed me into the family with such open arms,’ said Lara.
Ivana Trump is survived by her mother, her three children and 10 grandchildren.
Ivana’s mother, Marie Zelníčková, is 95 and due to turn 96 in September; she was last seen with her daughter in 2019, when the family gathered to mark the matriarch’s 93rd birthday.
On Friday, Ivanka Trump posted a tribute to her mother on Instagram, sharing several family photos from throughout the years.
‘Heartbroken by the passing of my mother. Mom was brilliant, charming, passionate and wickedly funny. She modeled strength, tenacity and determination in her every action,’ wrote Ivanka.
‘She lived life to the fullest — never forgoing an opportunity to laugh and dance,’ she added. ‘I will miss her forever and will keep her memory alive in our hearts always.’
Eric also took to Instagram to post a tribute to his late mother, sharing several images of the socialite and her children over the years, including photos of Ivana with her children when they were younger.
Ivana was last pictured out and about in New York City on June 22, when she was seen leaving her Upper East Side townhouse and being escorted to a hair salon.
Images showed the socialite being assisted by an aide, who gave her arm to Ivana as they strolled down the sidewalk to her hair appointment.
On Wednesday, the day before she died, Ivana dined at her favorite restaurant, Altesi, which is just a short walk away from her townhouse.
She seemed in good spirits but was tired and ordered only a small amount of food, Paola Alavian said.
Atilla Cetin, a manager at Nello, an Italian which sits a block from Ivana’s house, says she appeared in good health during her most recent visit three weeks ago.
Cetin told DailyMail.com Ivana looked ‘terrific’ and ‘appeared in good spirits’ the last time he’d seen her, and blinked back tears as he expressed regret at not visiting her before her sudden death.
Ivana was very popular with local businesses, and had been due to have her hair styled at 2pm on the day of her death. Staff there also said she appeared in decent health, and was looking forward to an upcoming trip to St Tropez.
Fatih Cakirca, the brother of salon owner Salih Cakirca, told DailyMail.com that his brother had done Ivana’s hair for 20 years, and that she came in once a week to get the ‘Ivana Classic’.
‘I’ve also known her for 20 years. She was a very nice lady, we’re shocked and sad. She had an appointment today at 2pm and the housekeeper just cancelled,’ he said.
‘I know she was going to St Tropez until September. I just saw her last Friday, she came to the salon, I did her hair. She was great, nothing wrong with her. She looked very healthy and happy. She was a very lovely lady …. Very friendly,’ added Fatih Cakirca, who works alongside his brother at Salih Salon, not far from Ivana’s home.
EXCLUSIVE: The extraordinary private life of Ivana Trump: Trove of photos show her loved up with Donald, lounging in a sequin swimsuit, posing with homemade birthday cakes, and soaking up the sun on vacation with her children
By Natasha Anderson For Dailymail.Com
The world remembers her for the legacy she left as a model, world-class athlete and powerful businesswoman.
But to her children, Ivana Trump was a caring mother and friend who was devoted to her family.
Troves of photos discovered by a South Florida collector back in 2014 show the beauty loved up with her ex-husband, Donald Trump, vacationing with her children and posing with homemade birthday cakes.
Ivana, 73, passed away Thursday in her home in New York City’s Upper East Side after suffering cardiac arrest.
She is survived by her three children – Donald Jr, Eric and Ivanka – and ten grandchildren.
Troves of photos discovered by a South Florida collector back in 2014 detail the private life of Ivana Trump. Ivana (right) is pictured with her then-husband Donald (left) and their infant daughter, Ivanka (center)
Ivana, Donald, Eric and Ivanka, at Mar-a-Lago in 1998, a year before their divorce
The intimate family pictures mainly span the decades of the 1970s through the 1990s – before Ivana and Donald split.
The pile features candid shots, polaroids and agency pictures from the likes of society shooter Mary Hilliard to Ron Galella, dubbed the ‘Paparazzo Extraordinaire’ and the bane of favorite subject Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis’ existence.
But more so, the photos show detail moments shared by the high-profile family behind closed doors.
Photographs captured at Ivana and Donald’s 1977 wedding show the model as a beautiful and radiant bride donning a rather simple white gown.
She is pictured alongside her dashing groom as the pair exchanged vows at the altar of the Marble Collegiate Church in New York City.
Dancing at the reception that followed are shots of the groom’s folks Fred Sr., and Mary and the bride’s parents, Milos Zeinicek and Marie Francova.
Their love seemed to radiate throughout the early stages of their relationship. The couple was seen cozied up together at dinners, posing for photos on rooftops with champagne in hand and embracing each other in their luxurious home.
Ivana and Donald with his father Fred Trump. Trump was strongly influenced by his father in deciding to forge a career in real estate development
Ivana and Donald are pictured embracing each other while she holds a glass of wine in her hand
Ivana and Donald Trump are pictured together at a black-tie social gathering
Ivana is pictured serving cake to her daughter, Ivanka Trump
Donald and Ivana Trump are pictured embracing each other at their Connecticut mansion
Ivana is pictured on an apparent vacation with her family
Photographs also detail the couple’s most intimate moments, when they became parents of three.
Ivana and Donald are pictured holding their infant children, seemingly smitten.
Birthday parties were snapped and notable in the fact that they did not seem like over the top affairs, but simply happy celebrations with no imported circuses or other extravagant entertainment.
In several photos Ivana is pictured alongside homemade cakes as the family celebrated together.
Pictures taken on vacations show the family soaked up the sun as Ivana wore a stunning blue, sequined bathing suit. On one trip – presumably to Disney World – Donald Jr., Ivanka and Eric met cartoon character Donald Duck. They are pictured on the trip with their mother.
The trove of photos also documented the children’s lives growing up, including childhood bath time and how they dressed up to celebrate Halloween.
Ivana and Donald Trump are toasting with champagne from a NYC rooftop
Ivana Trump relished her role as a loving mother to her three kids and proudly described how she raised them without their father’s help
Donald Jr., Ivanka and Eric Trump are pictured in their Halloween costumes
Ivanka showing some love for her little brother Eric, who is three years younger
Ivana and Ivanka Trump are pictured together at a luncheon
One of the Trump boys is pictured smiling in a small baby bathtub
Ivana was born in Czechoslovakia in 1949 to an electrical engineer father, Miloš Zelníček and telephone operator mother, Marie, however she relocated to Canada in the mid-1970s, before moving to the US, where she took up residence in New York City.
The then-teen used her impressive talents as a skier in order to plan her escape from behind the Iron Curtain.
Before her marriage to Donald, Ivana was wed to an Austrian ski instructor, Alfred Winklmayr – a friend with whom she tied the knot in order to gain an Austrian passport, which enabled her to leave her communist home country and move to Canada.
She divorced Winklmayr shortly after she was granted an Austrian passport – and she then went on to enjoy a romance with a ski boutique owner in Montreal while also working as a ski instructor.
However after just a couple of years of living in Canada, Ivana relocated to Manhattan to pursue her work as a model.
It was here that she met Trump, whom she wed in 1977, having first met him at an event that she attended with a group of fellow models.
Ivana and her children are pictured alongside Donald Duck
Ivana and Ivanka are pictured poolside with a group of ladies
Ivana lounging in what looks like Mar-a-Lago, just a breeze from Florida’s beach on the Atlantic
Donald had it made in the shade, and relaxing in the sunshine of his Palm Beach property Mar-a-Lago, now worth $250 million
Ivana is pictured on a beach in a silver and black outfit
Ivana wed Trump in a private ceremony held at Marble Collegiate Church in New York City – and they went on to have three children together: Donald Jr., born in 1977, Ivanka, born in 1981, and Eric, born in 1984.
The couple were married for 13 years before splitting in 1990 after Trump had an affair with Marla Maples, who went on to become his second wife. Ivana was awarded a hefty $14 million as part of her divorce settlement with her former husband, which was made official in 1992 – just months before Trump wed Maples.
She fought ferociously for her kids during her divorce from Donald, and wrote in her memoir that it was she who raised them – not their dad who ‘provided’ for them but had no interest until they ‘could talk business with him’.
She also took credit for the kids’ success and their mild manners.
Ivana was said to have been left furious over her then-husband’s illicit relationship with Maples, whom she repeatedly bashed in the years following her split from Trump.
A goggled Donald cuddles up with his little cuddle bunny Ivanka in the snow
Ivana helps her daughter Ivanka put in her earrings before an outting
Ivana and Ivanka are pictured together at an apparent masquerade event
Ivana smiles as her son prepares to blow out his birthday candles
A photograph of Ivana found inside the trunk
Another photograph of Ivana and Donald found inside the discarded trunk
Ivana is pictured in a black lace and sequin dress sporting tassel earrings
Following her split from Trump, Ivana began a romance with Italian businessman Riccardo Mazzucchelli, whom she wed in 1995, however the marriage was short-lived and the pair divorced just two years later.
She then went on to date and marry Italian actor Rossano Rubicondi, who passed away in October 2021 following a battle with cancer.
Rubicondi had liver cancer and suffered a lung aneurysm in the bathtub, his parents said in an interview with an Italian talk show.
Ivana and Rubicondi dated for six years before they tied the knot in 2008 during a lavish $3 million ceremony at Mar-A-Lago, the Palm Beach estate owned by none other than her second ex-husband.
The troves of Trump family photos was discovered by a Florida collector in 2014
She was 59 at the time, while he was 36.
The wedding was set to the theme of Shakespeare’s Midsummer Nights Dream and 400 guests attended, including the ex-President.
Ivana’s relationship with Rubicondi went through several ups and downs over the years, with the former couple splitting just a few months after their marriage in 2008 and then again in 2009.
They split for a third time in 2011, before reuniting in 2019, when they appeared on Italy’s version of Dancing With the Stars, before breaking up again just a few months later.
But Ivana and Rubicondi remained close and were often pictured together in New York up until just a few months before he passed away.
Ivana maintained a good relationship with Trump over the years, even speaking out to wish him a Happy Birthday in 2021, when she revealed that she had spoken with her ex-husband and joked to him that he shouldn’t ‘worry about his age’.
However the socialite and former downhill skier was never one to hold back when speaking about her ex-spouse.
In November 2020, following the presidential election – which Trump lost to Joe Biden – she discussed his refusal to accept the result, saying that he was ‘not a good loser’ and that he was likely going to ‘fight and fight and fight’ against conceding the race.
‘He’s not a good loser,’ she told People of Trump. ‘He doesn’t like to lose, so he’s going to fight and fight and fight.’
Ivana went on to urge the former President to accept defeat, saying: ‘He has to go and declare that he lost. I just want this whole thing to be over with, one way or the other. I really don’t care.’
She was also incredibly outspoken about her feelings towards Trump’s currently wife Melania, sensationally stating in 2017 that she was the true ‘first lady’ because she was the then-President’s first wife.
Ivana added that she had a ‘direct line’ to Trump at the White House, and spoke to him once every two weeks, but that she was always reluctant to call him because ‘Melania was there’.
Ivana is pictured at a New Year’s Eve party
Ivana is seen helping her daughter, Ivanka, with her hair
Ivana is engaged in conversation at a black-tie event
Her youngest son, Eric Trump, posted this photo of the two of them Thursday evening to Instagram
Eric, Ivanka, Donald Jr. and Ivana are pictured together
Donald is pictured with his first born child, Donald Jr.
Ivana stands over Ivanka as she blows out the candles on her birthday cake
Ivana is pictured with her children Donald Jr., Ivanka and Eric
Ivana Trump is pictured at an event with a group of women
Ivana and her three children enjoy an ice cream treat at an outdoor eatery
In the last years of her life, Ivana – who was once a regular on the New York social scene – had shied away from glitzy public events, instead maintaining a much more low-key lifestyle.
She was spotted on occasions stepping out in the Upper East Side neighborhood where her townhouse was located, either on shopping trips, or for meals that she often enjoyed with Rubicondi, before he passed away.
In recent months, she has been accompanied by an unnamed female aide, who was frequently seen by her side whenever the socialite was pictured out in public.
She died Thursday of a suspected cardiac arrest at the age of 73 after being found ‘unconscious and unresponsive’ in her New York City townhouse.
It was reported that the socialite was found at the bottom of a set of stairs in her Manhattan home, however an official cause of death has yet to be confirmed.
News of Ivana’s death was shared by ex-husband via a post on his Truth Social account on Thursday afternoon.
‘I am very saddened to inform all of those that loved her, of which there are many, that Ivana Trump has passed away at her home in New York City,’ Donald wrote.
‘She was a wonderful, beautiful, and amazing woman, who led a great and inspirational life,’ he continued. ‘Her pride and joy were her three children, Donald Jr., Ivanka, and Eric.
‘She was so proud of them, as we were all so proud of her. Rest in Peace, Ivana!’
Ivana’s son Eric confirmed the news of Ivana’s death to DailyMail.com, saying in a statement issued on behalf of the family: ‘Our mother was an incredible woman – a force in business, a world-class athlete, a radiant beauty, and caring mother and friend.
‘Ivana Trump was a survivor. She fled from communism and embraced this country. She taught her children about grit and toughness, compassion and determination.
‘She will be dearly missed by her mother, her three children and ten grandchildren.’
Eric also took to Instagram to post a tribute to his late mother, sharing several images of the socialite and her children over the years, including photos of Ivana with her children when they were younger.
Ivana and Donald embrace their daughter, Ivanka Trump
Donald and Ivana are pictured with their daughter, Ivanka, in 1991
International businessman Riccardo Mazzucchelli was able to woo the newly-single Ivana Trump with his expensive belongings, as he drove a Rolls Royce and owned a pricey townhouse in London while also keeping an apartment in Manhattan
Ivana became manager of the Plaza Hotel while her husband owned the famous property, and is pictured outside the building in 1990
Despite divorcing in 1992, Donald and Ivana reunited in 1995 for a Pizza Hut commercial, which saw them poke fun of their tempestuous marriage
Ivana is pictured holding Ivanka at a party
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Read more at DailyMail.co.uk