US hero Mary Lou Retton’s health battle takes shock new twist – daughter confirms the rumors are true

It’s been a long and worryingly winding road for Mary Lou Retton since it was confirmed the US Olympic hero was in the ICU with a rare and very serious case of pneumonia.

Just one day after we reported on her “scary setback”, however, it would appear that her fortunes have changed. The latest is that the icon gymnast has left hospital and is now at home in “recovery mode”.

According to the star of the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics’ daughter, Shaley Kelley Schrepfer, her mother still has a “long road of recovery” but has been deemed fit enough to leave hospital for the comforts of her home.

To say it’s been a worrying time for friends, family and loved ones of Mary Lou Retton is a drastic understatement.

The 55-year-old is widely regarded as one of the most iconic US athletes to have ever competed in Olympic gymnastics, having taken gold in the individual all-around competition at the 1984 games in Los Angeles.

Yet earlier this month, alarming reports revealed that the 55-year-old was “fighting for her life” in intensive care as she battles a rare form of pneumonia.

Retton’s family broke the troubling news, insisting that the ex-gymnast was “not able to breathe on her own.”

A further troubling update came last week, when Retton’s daughter – the aforementioned Shaley Kelley Schrepfer – confirmed her mother had suffered a “setback”. Said setback wasn’t elaborated on, though it was serious enough for Shaley to describe it as “scary.”

“Basically at the beginning of this week, we were going on the up and up,” she wrote. “We were so excited seeing so much progress. And then yesterday, we had a pretty scary setback.”

Now, however, it appears as Retton’s fans can breathe a sigh of relief, with Shaley writing to update the world with a bit of positive news.

“We still have a long road of recovery ahead of us,” she wrote. “But baby steps.”

Shaley confirmed that her mother had returned home from hospital and is in “recovery mode”.

Retton rose to national prominence through her feats at the 1984 Olympic Games, going on to appear in several films and TV shows throughout the 1980s and ’90s. She was also recognized as Sportsperson of the Year by Sports Illustrated in ’84.