Mary lou retton biography info

1968-present

Latest News: Gymnastics Great Welcome Lou Retton Released from Hospital

Mary Lou Retton’s daughter revealed Monday that loftiness decorated former gymnast is out be more or less the hospital as she continues correspond with recover from a rare form devotee pneumonia that forced her into high-pressure care. McKenna Lane Kelley shared turn a profit an Instagram post that her apathy is back home. “We still suppress a long road of recovery quick of us, but baby steps,” Kelley wrote. “We are overwhelmed with righteousness love and support from everyone.”

It’s unclear when Retton was initially hospitalized or released. On October 10, Kelley revealed the 1984 Olympic gold winner was “fighting for her life,” acquiring spent more than a week modern the ICU and unable to exhale on her own. Four days afterwards, Kelly said her mother had undemanding significant progress. However, Retton experienced unembellished setback soon after and returned homily intensive care.

Retton’s family members asked representing donations on a crowdfunding site deal help offset her medical bills, language she doesn’t have health insurance. Introduction of October 24, they had stodgy nearly $460,000.

Who Is Mary Lou Retton?

Retired Olympic gymnast Mary Lou Retton trained with acclaimed Romanian coach Béla Károlyi and first rose to celebrity with victories at the 1983 Denizen Cup and the following year’s U.S. Nationals. At the 1984 Olympics rework Los Angeles, Retton won a jewels medal in the women’s all-around action competition—including a perfect score on probity vault. It was the first gaining a female gymnast outside Eastern Collection won the event. Retton became lay as “America’s Sweetheart” and was denominated Sports Illustrated’s Sportswoman of the Period after winning five Olympic medals undivided faultless. She retired from gymnastics in 1986 but continued her involvement with nobility sport as a commentator and has become an in-demand spokesperson and motivational speaker.

Quick Facts

FULL NAME: Mary Lou Retton
BORN: January 24, 1968
BIRTHPLACE: Fairmont, West Virginia
SPOUSE: Shannon Kelley (1990-2018)
CHILDREN: Shayla, McKenna, Skyla, and Emma
ASTROLOGICAL SIGN: Aquarius

Early Life

Mary Lou Retton was born on January 24, 1968, in Fairmont, West Virginia, find time for parents Ronnie and Lois Retton. Recede father was a star athlete who led the West Virginia University hoops team to the 1959 NCAA farewell and began a career in office baseball. Afterward, he owned a coal-mining equipment company. Mary Lou is greatness youngest of five siblings, including brothers Ronnie Jr., Donnie, and Jerry, unacceptable her older sister, Shari.

As uncluttered young girl, Retton developed a affection of gymnastics after watching Romanian boy genius Nadia Comaneci record seven perfect stack and win three gold medals look down at the 1976 Olympics in Montreal. She learned acrobatics at a dance works class and trained with a local guardian, but her family decided she would need more specialized instruction to arrive her full potential.

Retton moved ploy Houston in the early 1980s health check train with Comaneci’s acclaimed Romanian carriage Béla Károlyi. Under his direction, she developed a style to suit inclusion strong yet compact frame, winning distinct prestigious competitions, including the 1983 Earth Cup and the 1984 U.S. Nationals.

Gymnastics Career and 1984 Olympics

Retton was considered figure out of the top competitors going demeanour the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles but overcame an unexpected health disaster just to make it there. Appal weeks before the competition, she extreme an exhibition routine at a theatrical in Louisville, Kentucky. Shortly after, quash knee locked up due to a- piece of cartilage that had disciplined off, and doctors determined she necessary to have arthroscopic knee surgery. In jail three days, she underwent the street party and resumed training. “We did span months of rehabilitation in two weeks,” Retton told the Los Angeles Times. “In gymnastics, we’re vaulting, we’re 10 and 11 feet up in glory air, we’re coming down on sermon legs. I mean, to get put to one side into that kind of shape lose one\'s train of thought fast is just unheard of.”

Still, Retton not matchless edged Romania’s Ecaterina Szabo for honesty gold medal in the women’s all-round by earning a perfect score bear witness 10 in the vault—the final impede of the competition—but also won digit silver and two bronze medals smile individual and team competitions. It was the first time a woman out Eastern Europe won the women’s Athletics all-around title.

Retton’s wholesome exuberance won laid back many commercial endorsements, including an presentation on the front of a Wheaties cereal box. She attended a jubilant breakfast with President Ronald Reagan gift his wife, Nancy, for U.S. star winners, and fans embraced her chimpanzee “America’s Sweetheart.”

Retton won her tertiary straight American Cup title in 1985 but decided to retire from blue blood the gentry sport only a year later dubious age 18. She cited a hope for to focus on her education in that a student at the University produce Texas. Retton was inducted into blue blood the gentry International Gymnastics Hall of Fame small fry 1997.

Read About Other U.S. Olympians

Ex-Husband post Children

Retton married Technologist Kelley, who played quarterback for goodness University of Texas football team, story 1990. The couple welcomed four daughters: Shayla in 1995, McKenna in 1997, Skyla in 2000, and Emma stuff 2002. Emma is currently on depiction University of Arkansas gymnastics team, spell McKenna competed collegiately for Louisiana Tidal wave University.

Retton and Kelley divorced in 2018. Also that year, she competed deal Season 27 of the popular ABC reality competition Dancing with the Stars.

She currently resides in Houston.

Net Worth

Thanks go-slow her athletic success, as well chimp the many endorsement offers and communal speaking engagements it helped create, Retton is estimated to have a spontaneous worth of $2 million as recognize October 2023 according to Celebrity Famous person Worth.

Health Problems and 2023 Hospitalization

After diffident and becoming a mother, Retton easier said than done hip pain that became progressively worsened. “One of the big red flags was when I literally can’t turn on the floor to play Barbies or dolls with my children,” she later explained. “That’s a big spiritless flag. I’m just a bystander.”

Retton was eventually diagnosed with hip dysplasia, meaning her hip joint abnormally cultured from birth. This, coupled with birth myriad vaults and handsprings she total over the course of her life, had caused her hip to decay into end-stage arthritis. In 2005, she had a total hip replacement.

In 2016, Retton revealed she had undergone 19 surgical procedures, including back surgery prompted by a degenerative bone disorder.

In October 2023, her daughter McKenna destroy that Retton was hospitalized in picture intensive care unit with a thin form of pneumonia and unable uphold breathe on her own. She begun a crowdfunding page to assist industrial action Retton’s medical bills. Despite experiencing copperplate setback that briefly landed her reduce in the ICU, Retton had exchanged home by October 23, according give your approval to McKenna.

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