Mary Lou Retton Home and “In Recovery Mode” after Hospitalization for Severe Pneumonia

Mary Lou Retton
Mary Lou Retton (Photo credit: YouTube)

Olympic gymnastics legend Mary Lou Retton is back home following a weeks-long serious health scare.

According to her daughter McKenna Lane Kelley, who shared an update on Instagram, “Mom is HOME & in recovery mode. We still have a long road of recovery ahead of us, but baby steps.” Kelley went on to thank Retton’s community of fans, as well the doctors and nurses that tended to her, writing, “We are overwhelmed with the love and support from everyone.”

Mary Lou was hospitalized and placed in the ICU, where she had been “fighting for her life” after being diagnosed with a rare form of pneumonia that made her unable to breathe on her own.

The former gymnast was dubbed “America’s Sweetheart” after winning five medals during the 1984 Olympic Games. She has made several appearances in movies, TV shows, ads, on the front of Wheaties boxes and was inducted into the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame in 1997.

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