On Thursday, the family of Ivana Trump informed ABC News of the Czech-American model and businesswoman's death at the age of 73.
Ivana Trump was better known as former President Donald Trump's first wife, to whom she was married from 1977 to 1992, and was the mother of his first three children: Donald Trump Jr., 44, Ivanka Trump, 40, and Eric Trump, 38. She is survived by her 10 grandchildren.
Donald Trump announced the death of his ex-wife on the social media platform Truth Social, which he founded after he was permanently suspended from Twitter following the January 6, 2021 attack on the United States Capitol Building by his supporters.
"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 10 grandchildren,” the Trump family revealed in a statement.
Ivana's death was caused by a cardiac arrest she suffered in her Upper East Side apartment at around 12:30 p.m. on Thursday, FDNY revealed.
Ivana and Donald divorced in part because Donald cheated on her with model Marla Maples, 58, who became his second wife and is the mother of his daughter, Tiffany Trump, 28.
Despite a tumultuous divorce, Ivana and Donald would maintain a cordial relationship. Ivana was known for the major role she played in the Trump family business and was often regarded as a "workaholic." She would later launch her own lines of jewelry, clothing and perfumes following her divorce from Donald, which left her with an additional $14 million settlement, a Connecticut mansion, a Trump Tower apartment and the use of Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate for one month a year.
Ivana went on to have two more marriages following her divorce from Donald. She dated the Italian actor and model Rossano Rubicondi, whom she married in 2008 in a $3 million wedding hosted at Donald's Mar-a-Lago, and divorced a year later.
Ivana has taken credit for raising Donald Trump's first three children. In several interviews as well as her memoir, "Raising Trump," she claimed she was responsible for the children's education and overall upbringing until they reached 21 years of age and were handed over to their father, Donald, to work for the family business.
"I’m often asked about the secret to mothering success, and my answer is always the same: there’s no magic recipe. I told the kids, 'Don’t lie, cheat, or steal. Don’t smoke, do drugs, or drink.' I was strict and demanding but always loving and affectionate. I encouraged sports and competitiveness, and enriched their lives by exposing them to different cultures and the arts," wrote Ivana Trump in her memoir, "Raising Trump."
"I always held them accountable for their actions and didn’t let them get away with anything. I showed them dignity, diligence, and determination by example, and gave them age-appropriate responsibilities and rules, which they followed without question—or there’d be hell to pay."
"I believe the credit for raising such great kids belongs to me. I was in charge of raising our children before our divorce, and I had sole custody of them after the split. I made the decisions about their education, activities, travel, child care, and allowances. When each one finished college, I said to my ex-husband, 'Here is the finished product. Now it’s your turn,'" Ivana wrote.