Olympic legend Mary Lou Retton ‘fighting for her life’ in ICU: daughter

CLARKSBURG, W.Va. (WBOY) — Olympic gold medalist and West Virginia native Mary Lou Retton is in an intensive care unit and “fighting for her life” as she battles pneumonia.

According to a *spotfund set up by her daughter, McKenna Kelley, Retton has been in the ICU for “over a week now” and has not been able to breathe on her own. Kelley said that out of respect for her mother’s privacy, she would not disclose any more details, but she did say that Retton is uninsured.

“Please consider helping our family out,” Kelley wrote in an Instagram story. “And most importantly please continue to pray.”

Retton, a Fairmont, West Virginia, native, made history as a gymnast particularly during the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles when she received two perfect 10 scores in the floor and vault categories just weeks after receiving an operation on her knee.

In that same Olympics, Retton became the first American in history to win all-around gold for gymnastics and also won two silver medals and two bronze medals, earning more than any other participant that year.

Retton also appeared as herself in some television series and movies, including “Scrooged,” “Baywatch,” and “Knots Landing,” according to her IMDb page. Under President George W. Bush, she served on the President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, in addition to several Olympic and gymnastics ambassador roles.

She is considered one of West Virginia’s most famous athletes of all time and has a road and park named after her in her hometown of Fairmont.

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