As former Olympic gymnast Mary Lou Retton continues to battle a rare form of pneumonia in the intensive care unit, her daughter says the gold medalist's progress is "truly remarkable."
Retton’s eldest daughter, Shayla Kelley Schrepfer, shared what she called "uplifting updates" in an Oct. 14 Instagram post, saying "prayers have been felt and have been answered."
"Although she remains in the ICU, her path to recovery is steadily unfolding," she said. "Her fighting spirit is truly shining! Her breathing is becoming stronger, and her reliance on machines is diminishing. Though it’s a lengthy journey, witnessing these improvements is incredibly heartening!"
Retton's daughter added that her mother has been responding "so well" to treatments and thanked their followers for "overwhelming love and support."
On Oct. 10, the Olympian's daughters revealed that Retton was “fighting for her life” with a rare form of pneumonia and was in need of financial assistance because of a lack of health insurance. At the time, Retton's daughters said she couldn't breathe on her own.
Schrepfer shared an update Oct. 11 in a heartfelt video on Instagram about her mother’s condition.
“As far as an update goes, she’s still fighting,” she said. “It’s going to be a day-by-day process, and we hope that you got to respect her boundaries as we want to keep the details between her and our family right now. She’s been treated with the best of the best professionals here, and it has been such a blessing to have their hands on her. So please continue the prayers and we cannot thank you enough for the love and support that you guys have shown.”
Schrepfer then thanked followers “for all the love and support that you’ve given to my mom. My sisters and I are overwhelmed. We’re overwhelmed.”
“We didn’t even realize that so many people out there love her just as much as we do,” she added. “It’s been a really hard time for our family. And so just seeing that people love her like that and showing her that support is just meant the world to us and to her. So thank you.”
Retton shares four daughters — Schrepfer, McKenna Lane Kelley, Skyla Kelley and Emma Jean Kelley — with former University of Texas quarterback Shannon Kelley, whom she divorced in 2018, according to People.
The now 55-year-old represented the United States at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles at age 16. At the Games, Retton won five medals, including a gold for her performance in the individual all-around competition.
That year, Retton became the first woman in U.S. history to win the Olympic all-around gold medal, and she was later featured on the front of the Wheaties cereal box.
Retton went on to appear on the box three times, according to the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Hall of Fame, which the organization has noted put her in an “elite group of athletes.”
Despite retiring from the competitive sport in 1986, Retton was once again in the spotlight due to the 2016 USA Gymnastics sex abuse scandal. Her former coaches, Bela Karolyi and Márta Károlyi, were under fire for their role in fostering an environment for convicted sex offender Larry Nassar to operate, but were not implicated.
