Mary Lou Retton Daughter Gives Update After ‘Scary Setback’ in Pneumonia Battle

Olympic gold medal-winning gymnast Mary Lou Retton has suffered a “pretty scary setback” and remains in ICU, according to one of her daughters.

The Dancing With the Stars alum was hospitalized earlier this month with a rare form of pneumonia. Retton’s daughter, McKenna Kelley, shared a crowdfunding link last week, revealing that her mother is “fighting for her life” and “is not able to breathe on her own.”

Things seemed to take a positive turn over the weekend, as Retton’s other daughter, Shayla Schrepfer, took to Instagram to share an update. “[Retton’s] progress is truly remarkable,” she said, adding that “her path to recovery is steadily progressing. Her fighting spirit is truly shining.”

 

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A post shared by Shayla Kelley Schrepfer (@shaylaschrepfer)

But Schrepfer returned to Instagram on Wednesday (October 18) night to provide a further update, and, unfortunately, things had taken a turn for the worse.

“I figured it was time for another update,” she said. “Basically, at the beginning of this week, we were going on the up-and-up. We were so excited, seeing so much progress, and then yesterday, we had a pretty scary setback.”

 

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A post shared by Shayla Kelley Schrepfer (@shaylaschrepfer)

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Schrepfer didn’t go into further detail on what exactly had happened, but she did note that her mom was still in ICU. “We’re just working through some things as far as her setback goes,” she continued. “She had a better day today, which is great; she is just really, really exhausted.”

Kelley previously revealed that Retton doesn’t have medical insurance, hence starting the fundraiser to help pay for the bills. As of writing, the donations have reached over $450,000, eclipsing the initial goal of $50,000.

Retton is best known for winning the gold medal in the individual all-around gymnastics competition at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. She also appeared on Season 27 of Dancing With the Stars in 2018, where she was partnered with Sasha Farber; the pair were the fifth couple eliminated from the competition.