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Ivana Trump (nee Zelníčková) is best known as the late first wife of former President Donald Trump, but he was actually one of four men that she would eventually call her life partner.
The successful Czech-American entrepreneur had previously been married before she said her vows to Donald, and she passed away on July 14, 2022, at the age of 73 due to cardiac arrest. There were four marriages for Ivana: one before she met Donald Trump, and two after, both of which lasted only a few short years.
Although Donald rarely expressed his feelings about Ivana's past and future relationships, her exes all felt strongly about her. Who exactly were Ivana Trump's husbands?
Ivana Trump's Cold War Marriage To Alfred Winklmayr
Ivana, at the tender age of 22, wed Alfred Winklmayr in Prague in November 1971.
In addition to being a professional skier, Ivana was an alternate for the Olympics. Alfred Winklmayr, a competitor in the same sport, was her first husband. Her attorney, Michael Kennedy, claims that the two only tied the knot so that Ivana could escape her native Czechoslovakia and not because they truly loved one another.
Ivana's lawyer reportedly told the Washington Post in 1990 that the marriage was a "Cold War marriage" that was "never consummated." She reportedly "just wanted her freedom" from the Communist regime in Czechoslovakia.
Ivana reportedly obtained her Austrian passport in March 1972, immigrated to Canada in September 1972, and, after the required waiting period, filed for divorce in August 1973.
Why Did Ivana Marry Donald Trump?
Ivana first met Donald, a real estate developer, in New York City during a 1976 business trip. According to British media, the then 26-year-old model recalled that Donald had assisted her and her friends in securing a table at a popular restaurant. There was apparently instant chemistry between them, and a year later, they tied the knot.
“I have never met a man who would pay for something, and he didn’t want anything in return,” she told the British media outlet. “Little did I know.”
In an affair attended by socialites, the couple wed in April 1977, and their son Donald Trump Jr. was born in December. Ivanka Trump was born in October 1981, and Eric Trump was born in January 1984.
Four years after the birth of their son Eric, Ivana became a naturalized US citizen and ended her marriage to Donald after he was caught cheating on her with Marla Maples, whom he later married and had Tiffany Trump with.
The divorce settlement awarded Ivana $14 million, $650,000 in monthly child support payments, the couple's Connecticut home, an apartment in Trump Tower, and use of the Mar-a-Lago estate where Trump, Melania, and Barron still reside for one month out of the year.
“She was a wonderful, beautiful, and amazing woman, who led a great and inspirational life,” Donald wrote on social media upon her passing. “Her pride and joy were her three children, Donald Jr., Ivanka, and Eric.”
Ivana Trump’s Marriage With Riccardo Mazzucchelli Resulted In Lawsuits
According to People, Ivana met Italian businessman Riccardo Mazzucchelli for lunch in 1991, and he courted her by giving her a room full of roses after the date.
The article claims that after Ivana said no to his 10-carat diamond proposal, he tried again three years later with a 3-carat Burmese sapphire, and this time she said yes. Twenty months after getting married in 1995, they were already divorced.
Ivana and Riccardo settled their $15 million confidentiality lawsuit out of court. Then, Mazzucchelli sued Ivana and Donald for libel in the United Kingdom due to the slanderous articles published in the United States and around the world. The parties agreed to resolve this matter without going to court.
When asked about his feelings for Ivana (and ex-husband Donald), Riccardo went into greater detail during an interview. “I loved Ivana a lot, and I think I did my very best. I did more for her than Donald ever did.”
In 2017, Riccardo passed away.
Ivana’s Short-Lived Marriage To Rossano Rubicondi
A number of years after Donald married former model Melania Trump and the couple had their son Barron, Ivana tied the knot with actor Rossano Rubicondi at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, in 2008.
Ivana and Rossano's marriage lasted less than a year, as it ended the following year, in 2009.
Despite the fact that they were no longer married before their first anniversary, they continued to be an on-again, off-again couple for the better part of a decade. In 2018, they were seen dancing together on the Italian version of Dancing with the Stars.
“The relationship just ran its course,” Ivana told Page Six the following year. “Rossano spends a lot of time in Italy, and I spend a lot of time in New York, Miami, and St. Tropez. The long-distance relationship really doesn’t work. We had a good time and are friends. The split was amicable.”
Rubicondi passed away in November 2021 at the age of 49. Ivana's grief over Rossano's death last year was palpable. He reportedly passed away from cancer, and she cared for him until the end.
Were Ivana’s Ex-Husbands Included In Her Will?
The chief medical examiner for New York City concluded that Ivana Trump, the first wife of former president Donald Trump, died of "blunt impact injuries" to her torso. This death was ruled an accident by the coroner.
What this raises is the question of whether or not any of her four exes were provided for in her will. Unsurprisingly, she plans to give the bulk of her fortune to her three children: Don Jr., Ivanka Trump, and Eric Trump.
Her children are attempting to sell her New York City townhouse for $26.5 million (one prominent Upper East Side broker told Curbed that was way too much). The Trump children will divide their inheritance in three ways.
There has been no indication that Donald Trump is upset about being left out of Ivana's will. During an interview with their mutual friend Cindy Adams for the New York Post, he eulogized his late wife, saying, “She was outstanding. Beautiful inside and out.”
And for some unexplained reason, Ivana was laid to rest in Trump's New Jersey golf club, Bedminster.