Ivana, the first wife of former US President Donald Trump, died aged 73, after being found unresponsive in her New York City home on Thursday.She was discovered by officers – who were called to do a wellness check – at the bottom of a staircase in her home on 10 East 64th Street in Manhattan at 12.40pm, police sources said.Authorities believe she suffered a cardiac arrest, but the official cause of death has yet to be determined. Speaking on Fox News, Lara Trump – the wife of Ivana’s son, Eric, and a contributor for the network – described her mother-in-law’s death as “a big loss for us as a family” and “a tough day”.Lara told the program that Ivana was an “incredible businesswoman but the title and role she cherished most was of mum” to her three children Donald Jr, Ivanka and Eric. “She was a tough love kind of mum,” Lara said.“She made sure they had good manners … and gave them the strength and resiliency they all have. “A lot of people always note that about my husband and his siblings – that they are very strong individuals. “A lot of people think that’s because they have a tough dad, that’s part of it, but they also had an incredibly tough mum.”Lara added that New York City would “never be the same” without Ivana and that “the people in her neighbourhood” would be among those who would miss her most, further to her family.“So many women, up until her death, really looked at her as a pillar of strength for women everywhere and inspiration,” she said.Ivana’s children, Donald Jr, Ivanka and Eric Trump, released a joint statement in the hours following her death.“Our mother was an incredible woman — a force in business, a world-class athlete, a radiant beauty, and caring mother and friend,” it read.“Ivana Trump was a survivor. She fled from communism and embraced this country. She taught her children about grit and toughness, compassion and determination,” the family said.“She will be dearly missed by her mother, her three children and ten grandchildren.”A source close to Ivanka Trump told The Post the former first daughter is in “shock” over her mother’s death.“They were super close,” the source said, adding that Ivana had spent her last days with family in New York City.Ivana spent her final hours eating at her favourite New York Italian restaurant, the distraught owner has revealed.Paola Alavian, who owns Altesi’s – a stone’s throw from Ivana’s townhouse in Manhattan – said the 73-year-old “ordered only a small amount of food” before being found dead hours later.Ms Alavian said Ivana was acting normal but looked “maybe a little bit tired”.“As always she asked me how I was doing – she was always supporting us – and we just shared an extremely normal conversation,” Mr Alavian said.“Her health seemed normal, she looked maybe a little bit tired, but she otherwise seemed okay.“She was just an excellent human; she was a really, really good person.”Former President Donald Trump broke the sad news on his social network Truth Social.“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,” he wrote.“She was a wonderful, beautiful, and amazing woman, who led a great and inspirational life. 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.”The couple was married for 15 years between 1977 to 1992.Born in former Czechoslovakia under communist rule, Ivana moved to Canada in the 1970s, where she briefly worked as a model.Multiple accounts exist around how her and Mr Trump met, however, The New York Times reports they were introduced at a “party in Montreal”. She held many roles in Trump family businesses throughout her life.Their marriage ended after intense media speculation over Mr Trump’s affair with actor and model Marla Maples. Their messy separation was well-documented in the media but the pair appeared to later reconcile as friends. Ivana received $US14 million ($20.74 million) as a result of her divorce proceedings.According to Vanity Fair, she also got the couple’s 45-room-Greenwich mansion in Connecticut, an apartment at Trump Plaza, with an agreement that Mr Trump would pay $US650,000 ($963,000) every year to support their three children.In 1993, Ms Maples gave birth to Mr Trump’s fourth child, Tiffany Trump. They would also marry that year, before getting divorced in 1999. According to an interview with CBS’ Jim Axelrod in 2017, Ivana admitted that her ex-husband was still a big part of her life. She said the couple spoke to each other “maybe once a week”.“He asks me for advice. He asks me about, ‘Should I tweet, should I not tweet?’ I said, ‘I think you should tweet.’”After Mr Trump, Ivana went onto marry another two times. In 1995 she wed Italian entrepreneur Riccardo Mazzucchelli, before they divorced in 1997.She tied the knot to model Rossano Rubicondi in 2008, before they divorced in 2009. They continued to see each other on and off for a decade.Speaking to Page Six in 2019, Ivana said the “split was amicable”.“Rossano spends a lot of time in Italy and I spend a lot of time in New York, Miami and St-Tropez, and he has to work,” she said.“The long-distance relationship really doesn’t work. We had a good time and are friends.”In 2021, Mr Rubicondi died after a battle with skin cancer.From 1997, she also dated Italian aristocrat Count Roffredo Gaetani dell’Aquila d’Aragona Lovatelli. The pair were believed to have been together until he died in a car crash in 2005.– with NY Post
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