[5] After working as an English teacher at her childhood school, she graduated in Education Sciences by the Comillas Pontifical University in 1993.

[4] Since she was a child, Elena showed a special preference for horse riding, a passion that she inherited from her grandmother, Princess María de las Mercedes, Countess of Barcelona.

[7][9] Elena was described by fellow equestrian Luis Jaime Carvajal y Salas, 5th Duke of Aveyro, as a "very good [rider]" but he pointed that her problem was that horse riding "requires time and she doesn't have it" as a member of the royal family.

[24] In November 2009, the Spanish media reported that she and her husband would divorce, although a rumour to that effect had been circulating for a year before the announcement was made.

[28] On 21 January 2010, the divorce was registered at the Civil Registry of the Spanish Royal Family and it was officially announced on 9 February 2010; Jaime de Marichalar was no longer permitted to use the ducal title and he was no longer considered to be an official member of the Spanish Royal Family.

[30] Since finishing her most basic education in 1983, Elena, along with her sister Cristina, supported their parents representing the Crown at official events such as the National Day, the wedding of Princess Astrid of Belgium,[31] the re-burial of Queen Victoria Eugenia at El Escorial,[32] the state visit of Mexican president Miguel de la Madrid to Spain,[31] and the 1984 Prince of Asturias Awards ceremony,[33] among others.

Since the ascension of her brother in June 2014 and the consequent departure from the royal family, Elena has reduced her public appearances.

Exceptionally, that year she represented the Crown in some events, such as the funeral of Cayetana Fitz-James Stuart, 18th Duchess of Alba in November 2014[34] and the delivery of the National Sports Awards in December 2014.

[35] Since then, Elena has limited her institutional activity to annually presiding over the awards ceremony for the Patrimonio Nacional's Children's and Youth Painting Contest.

[36][37][38][39] In addition to her obligations as an infanta, Elena has a personal job that allows her to compensate for the lack of public salary by not being a member of the royal family.

[40] From this position, Infanta Elena has helped the foundation to promote projects and give visibility to various cooperation programs in Latin America through several international tours.