Ivana Trump Net Worth

What Was Ivana Trump's Net Worth?

Ivana Trump was an Olympic athlete, socialite, and fashion model who had a net worth of $100 million at the time of her death.

Ivana Trump was probably most famous for being married to Donald Trump. They were married from 1977 to 1992. They had three children together: Donald Trump, Jr., Ivanka Trump, and Eric Trump. Unfortunately, Ivana Trump died on July 14, 2022, at the age of 73.

Though she was long framed by tabloids as a glamorous socialite and celebrity spouse, Ivana was also an ambitious executive who held senior roles inside the Trump Organization and oversaw some of its most visible properties. During her marriage to Donald Trump, she helped shape the visual identity and public image of his real estate empire, from the interiors of Trump Tower to the management of the Plaza Hotel. After their highly publicized divorce, Ivana reinvented herself as an independent entrepreneur, launching fashion, jewelry, and beauty brands, writing books, and cultivating a second career as a media figure. She became a symbol of resilience and reinvention, especially for women navigating divorce and financial independence.

Early Life

Ivana Marie Zelníčková was born on February 20, 1949, in Gottwaldov, Czechoslovakia, now known as Zlín in the Czech Republic. Her father, Miloš Zelníček, was an electrical engineer who recognized her athletic ability early and encouraged her to pursue skiing at a competitive level. Ivana trained intensively as a child and later competed with the Czech junior national ski team, an experience that allowed her to travel outside her hometown during the restrictive Communist era.

She attended Charles University in Prague, where she studied languages and physical education while remaining active in competitive sports. As a student, she lived through the Prague Spring of 1968 and the subsequent Soviet invasion, events that shaped her worldview and desire for independence. Ivana ultimately earned a master's degree in physical education in 1972.

In 1971, she entered what she later described as a "Cold War marriage" with Austrian ski instructor Alfred Winklmayr. The marriage allowed her to obtain an Austrian passport and legally leave Czechoslovakia without defecting, which minimized repercussions for her family. The marriage was dissolved in 1973, and Ivana relocated to Canada, where she worked as a ski instructor and began exploring modeling opportunities.

Move to North America and Modeling Career

After settling in Canada, Ivana coached ski racers in Montreal and gradually transitioned into modeling. Her work brought her to New York City through the Audrey Morris agency, exposing her to the fashion, media, and social scenes of Manhattan in the mid-1970s. She also worked promotional jobs tied to major events, including the 1976 Montreal Olympics.

It was during this period that Ivana met Donald Trump, then a young real estate developer beginning his ascent in New York. Their meeting marked a turning point in her life, shifting her trajectory from athletics and modeling toward business and high society.

Marriage to Donald Trump and Rise as a Power Couple

Ivana and Donald Trump met in 1976 and married the following year. Over the next decade, they became one of the most visible couples in New York, emblematic of the excess, ambition, and media fascination that defined the 1980s. Ivana was widely credited with popularizing the nickname "the Donald," which became a fixture in tabloid culture and helped cement her husband's public persona.

The couple had three children together: Donald Trump Jr., Ivanka Trump, and Eric Trump. While raising a family, Ivana also assumed significant responsibilities within the Trump Organization, rejecting the role of a passive spouse.

Role at the Trump Organization

Ivana was a self-described workaholic who played a hands-on role in developing some of the Trump Organization's most prominent projects. She served as vice president for interior design, overseeing aesthetic decisions that defined the Trump brand's emphasis on luxury and opulence. She was deeply involved in the design of Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue, selecting materials, furnishings, and finishes that became instantly recognizable.

She also managed the Plaza Hotel, one of Donald Trump's most prized assets, and was appointed president of the Trump Castle Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City. Colleagues and contemporaries frequently described her as detail-obsessed and demanding, with a management style that reflected her high standards and ambition.

In 1988, Ivana became a naturalized citizen of the United States, further solidifying her role in her husband's business and public life.

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Divorce and Public Fallout

Ivana and Donald Trump's marriage began to unravel in the late 1980s amid highly publicized reports of his affair with Marla Maples. Their divorce proceedings in 1990 became tabloid spectacle, dominating headlines and gossip columns for months. In a deposition, Ivana accused Donald of rape, though she later clarified that she did not mean the term in a literal criminal sense.

Divorce Settlement with Donald Trump

Over the course of their marriage, Ivana and Donald had FOUR prenuptial agreements as his empire grew. Under the final agreement, Ivana was given $25 million in cash plus their mansion in Greenwich, Connecticut. She was also given the option of a $22 million cash payment for a new house if the Greenwich house was sold before their divorce was finalized. Finally, she was awarded $650,000 in annual child support until all three children reached the age of 18. After adjusting for inflation, Ivana's total payment was worth the same as around $100 million in today's dollars. Donald was reportedly in deep debt at the time of the divorce and was forced to pay for the settlement with bank loans.

Reinvention and Independent Career

Following the divorce, Ivana emerged as a cultural figure in her own right. She became something of a heroine to divorced women, bolstered by her cameo in the 1996 film "The First Wives Club," where she delivered the now-famous line, "Don't get mad, get everything."

She founded Ivana, Inc. and Ivana Haute Couture, launching clothing, jewelry, and beauty lines sold primarily through television shopping channels such as QVC and the Home Shopping Network. These ventures proved commercially successful and allowed her to build an independent income stream separate from the Trump name.

Ivana also invested in real estate in the United States and Europe and acquired a 33% stake in Croatia's second-largest daily newspaper in 1998. Not all ventures succeeded. In the mid-2000s, she was associated with several unrealized real estate developments, including a planned high-rise condominium project in Las Vegas that was never built.

Books, Media, and Public Persona

Ivana authored several books that blended autobiography, self-help, and lifestyle advice. Her most notable works include "The Best Is Yet to Come: Coping With Divorce and Enjoying Life Again" and "Raising Trump," a memoir focused on her upbringing and her role in raising her three children. She also wrote an advice column titled "Ask Ivana" for the Globe for many years and launched a lifestyle magazine, "Ivana's Living in Style."

She remained a frequent presence on television, appearing on talk shows, hosting the reality special "Ivana Young Man," and starring in the Lifetime biography "Intimate Portrait: Ivana Trump." Her thick Czech accent, towering blond hair, and unapologetic confidence made her instantly recognizable to American audiences.

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Later Relationships and Personal Life

Ivana married two more times after her divorce from Donald Trump. Her marriage to Italian businessman Riccardo Mazzucchelli in 1995 ended in divorce two years later. In 2008, she married Italian actor Rossano Rubicondi in a ceremony held at Mar-a-Lago, with Donald Trump in attendance. That marriage lasted less than a year, though the two remained intermittently close in subsequent years.

Despite her complicated personal history, Ivana maintained cordial public relations with her former husband and largely avoided publicly undermining him, even during his political rise.

Real Estate Holdings

In 1992, Ivana purchased a five-story townhouse on Manhattan's Upper East Side for $2.5 million. She extensively renovated and decorated the property in her signature lavish style, featuring marble staircases, themed rooms, and dramatic interiors. After her death, her children listed the townhouse for $26.5 million in November 2022.

Death and Legacy

Ivana Trump died on July 14, 2022, at age 73, at her Manhattan home. Authorities determined that her death was accidental, the result of a fall. Tributes from her children described her as a force in business, a devoted mother, and an inspiration.

Ivana Trump's legacy is complex and enduring. She was a key architect of one of the most recognizable real estate brands in the world, a survivor of a brutal public divorce, and a woman who successfully reinvented herself multiple times. While history often frames her through the lens of her famous ex-husband, her own career stands as a testament to ambition, adaptability, and self-determination.

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