What happened to Mary Lou Retton? Gymnastics legend battles rare illness in ICU     

Gymnastics legend, Mary Lou Retton is suffering from a rare form of pneumonia and fighting for her life in the ICU, as per her daughter McKenna Kelley.

She shared the news in a post on her Instagram story and revealed that Retton, 55, is unable to breathe and has been in the intensive care unit for over a week.

Why is Mary Lou Retton in the ICU?

The former American gymnast is battling for her life in the ICU with a rare form of pneumonia. The daughter of the gold-winning gymnast recently shared the news on her Instagram which also had a link to a Spotfund page created for her mother.

McKenna Kelley’s Instagram story read:

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.

What about Mary Lou Retton’s health insurance?

As per Kelley, the 55-year-old gymnastic champion does not have health insurance. In her Instagram story, Kelley also requested everyone to help her mother with finances. For this purpose, she started a fundraising campaign and wrote:

Out of respect for her and her privacy, I will not disclose all details. However, I will disclose that she is not insured.

She continued:

We ask that if you could help in any way. Pray and if you could help us with finances for the hospital bill. Anything, absolutely anything, would be so helpful for my family and my mom. Thank y’all so very much!

According to People, the fundraiser started by Kelley has a goal of $50,000 and as of now, nearly $8,000 has been contributed by 109 donors.

There are not many details about Mary Lou Retton’s pneumonia, however, all we know is that her condition is serious and the famous gymnast is fighting for her life.

First American to win an all-around gold medal at the Olympics

Born in West Virginia, United States, Mary Lou Retton is a legendary sporting icon. She is one of the most popular names in the sport of gymnastics who made history by becoming the first American to win an all-around gold medal at the 1984 Summer Olympics. Mary Lou was just 16 years old at that time. She also won two bronze and two silver medals at the Olympics.

Mary Lou Retton retired in 1986 but still remained quite active in the media. In 1997, she was inducted into the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame and was also selected into the Houston Sports Hall of Fame in the year 2020. Mary Lou was the first woman ever to be selected into the Houston Sports Hall of Fame.