Is Mary Lou Retton a Republican? All you need to know about Olympic gold-medal winning gymnast's life outside the sport

Mary Lou Retton is a Republican and a gold medalist at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. She was an outspoken supporter of the Reagan administration and supporter of Ronald Wilson Reagan, a member of the Republican Party.

Lou Retton was seen supporting the Republican Party in television ads and was also present at Ronald Reagan's reelection campaign rally, which took place a month after the Olympics in West Virginia.

She also delivered the Pledge of Allegiance alongside 1996 Olympic champion Kerri Strug at the 2004 Republican National Convention.

The 55-year-old was a star performer at the Summer Olympics with a gold medal in the women's individual all-round event.

Having won the gold medal, the 4-foot 9-inch tall player became the first woman gymnast from America to win a gold medal in the all-around competition at the Olympics.

Mary Lou Retton also won a couple of silver medals and as many bronze medals at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. The two silver medals came from the women's team all-round competition and the women's vault competition.

She bagged the bronze medal in the women's uneven bars event and women's floor exercise event. The former gymnast became one of the most famous athletes in the United States after fabulous performance, winning five medals at the 1984 Summer Olympics.

Her notable achievements also include three gold medals at the American Cup.

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Former American gymnast Mary Lou Retton battles rare a

form of pneumonia in the ICU

On Tuesday (October 10), Mary Lou Retton's daughter McKenna announced that her mother was batting a rare form of pneumonia in the ICU. The 55-year-old player is fighting for her life as she is unable to breathe on her own.

Her daughter McKenna also stated that the American Olympic champion is not medically insured. She did not have health insurance and thus had to rely on crowdfunding as the family wasn't able to clear the medical dues.

Mary Lou Retton has four daughters and one of them took to social media to inform about the American gymnasts' health conditions and raise funds for her medical expenses. McKenna Kelly wrote:

"My amazing mom, Mary Lou, has a very rare form of pneumonia and is fighting for her life. She is not able to breathe on her own. She’s been in the ICU for over a week now."

"We ask that if you could help in any way. Pray and if you could help us with finances for the hospital bill," she added.