Background
Ilves grew up in Tallinn and graduated from Saku Gymnasium in 1986.
Ilves grew up in Tallinn and graduated from Saku Gymnasium in 1986.
University of Tartu.
She was the First Lady of Estonia from 9 October 2006 until their divorce on 30 April 2015. She was president of the Estonian Rollerskating Federation from 2008 to 2014. In 1993, she received a bachelor"s degree in medicine from Tartu University.
In her professional life, Ilves has worked in advertising and public relations.
She was marketing director of the newspaper Eesti Päevaleht from 1996 to 2001. From 2001 to 2002, she worked for Enterprise Estonia, leading the Brand Estonia project which developed the widely used slogan and logo Welcome to Estonia.
In 2005, she began a business project of developing a guesthouse in Ärma farm, located in Abja Parish. The farm has belonged to Toomas Hendrik Ilves"s ancestors since the 18th century.
As First Lady, Ilves championed a number of initiatives supporting children, health, and the advancement of women.
She took part in numerous international state visits. Belgium: Grand Cross of the Order of the Crown (Belgium) (06/2008).
