Ellesse Gundersen

Ellesse Gundersen
Personal information
Birth name	Ellesse Jordan Tzinberg
Born	December 17, 1991 (age 32); Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Website	http://www.ellessejordan.com
Sport
Country	Philippines
Sport	Equestrian
Achievements and titles
World finals	2018 World Equestrian Games

Ellesse Jordan Gundersen (née Tzinberg; born 17 December 1991 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) is a Filipino equestrian athlete. She competed at the 2018 World Equestrian Games and at the 2018 World Cup Final aboard her horse Triviant. She became the first Filipino athlete to compete at the major dressage championships.^[1]

Biography

Ellesse Gundersen is born to an American-Australian father and a Filipino-Spanish mother. She started riding at an age of six, and competed already aged 12 in both dressage and show jumping. In 2008, she moved to the United States, where she started an equestrian scholarship at the Kansas State University. In 2009, she received her university degree at the University of San Diego. Her international equestrian career started at the age of 23 in Europe.^[2]

Personal life

Ellesse Gundersen is married to Henrik Gundersen and is the mother of a son Christian. They live in Wellington, Florida. She is fluent in English, Filipino, French, Malay and Danish.^[1]

Modelling

In 2010, she was scouted as a model while she visited Paris. She was offered a modelling contract to work as a professional. After working a full season as a model, she signed a contract for a modelling agency based in Los Angeles. After four years of modelling, she decided to return to the equestrian world to focus on her professional equestrian career.^[3]