The infanta Cristina, daughter of the emeritus king of Spain Juan Carlos I, and her husband, Iñaki Urdangarin, have decided “by mutual agreement, to interrupt their marital relationship,” according to both in a statement sent to EFE on Monday, in which they underline that the commitment to their four children “remains intact.”
“By mutual agreement, we have decided to end our marriage relationship. The commitment to our children remains intact. Since it is a private decision, we ask for the utmost respect from all those around us, “according to the text of the brief statement announcing the decision.
Married on October 4, 1997 in the city of Barcelona, they do not give more details about the terms of the separation, caused by the photographs published last Wednesday in which Urdangarin was seen walking hand in hand with Ainhoa Armentia, a co-worker. in a law firm in Vitoria and mother of two children.
The images were released by the Spanish magazine Readings after they were taken on January 11 on a beach near Bidart (France), where the Urdangarin family has a summer residence.
The day after the publication, Urdangarin, 54 years old, made a statement to the media in which he confirmed the marital crisis.
“Things happen and we are going to manage it in the best possible way. It is a difficulty that we will manage with the utmost calm and together, as we have always done, “he said.
The last time he was seen with the infanta Cristina was at the end of the year at the Spanish ski resort of Baqueira (Lérida, northeast), where they spent a few days with their children: Juan, 22 years old; Paul, 21; Miguel, 19, and Irene, 16.
She in Switzerland, he in Spain
Since the photographs of Urdangarin with Armentia became known, the Infanta Cristina of Spain, sister of King Felipe VI, has not made any public appearance.
Cristina de Borbón, 56, works for the La Caixa Bank Foundation and continues to reside in Geneva (Switzerland).
Urdangarin joined the Imaz&Asociados law firm in Vitoria (northern Spain) to work as a consultant on March 4, 2021, three days after his transfer to that prison, after passing through other prisons, once he was granted the prison regime opened.
Urdangarin had been sentenced to five years and ten months in prison for corruption offenses, which he began serving in June 2018.
Since last June, he no longer had to spend the night in prison, after good behavior and fulfillment of his obligations were exempted from it.
In 2007, the infanta Elena de Borbón, eldest daughter of Juan Carlos I, separated from her husband, Jaime de Marichalar, and two and a half years later, in January 2010, they signed the divorce.