Mary Lou Retton’s daughter and her Dancing with the Stars pro partner Sasha Farber have given updates on the former Olympic gold-medal gymnast’s health amid her recent hospitalization.
On Tuesday morning, Retton’s daughter McKenna Kelley revealed that her mother is “fighting for her life” in the intensive care unit with a “very rare form of pneumonia.” She wrote in a message on a Spotfund fundraising page, “She is not able to breathe on her own. She’s been in the ICU for over a week now.”
Following Tuesday’s DWTS episode, Farber told Entertainment Tonight that he had also spoken with Retton earlier in the day. The duo competed together during season 27 of the dancing competition show in 2018.
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“I’ve been talking to her today and she’s fighting,” Farber said. “She kind of wants to give up, but I’m sending her videos of her dancing and I’m telling her, ‘There’s only one Mary Lou Retton. You’ve got this!'”
The pro dancer added that Retton was actually in L.A. a few weeks ago and wanted to meet up but that he couldn’t due to his rehearsal schedule.
“But I just mean, you know, you’ve got to see the people [you care about], you’ve gotta say hi, you gotta call them,” Farber said. “And I’ve been speaking to her today.”
Kelley also took to Instagram Wednesday to give an update on her mother’s battle, writing, “Mom is in the ICU and continues to fight. She is getting incredible medical care! Thank you to all the doctors and nurses.”
Her daughter also thanked everyone “for their outpouring of love and support for our Mom” and asked for “continued prayers and positive thoughts for our Mom.”
After starting gymnastics at a young age, Retton went on to compete in the 1984 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles, where she made history as the first American to win an Olympic individual all-around gold medal. She also took home two silver medals and two bronze medals during the games. She later retired from the sport in 1986.
Retton has also been inducted into the U.S. Olympic Hall of Fame as well as the International Gymnastics Hall of Fame.
