On October 10, 2023, Mary Lou Retton’s daughter McKenna Kelley revealed that her mom was “fighting for her life” in the ICU. The former Olympic gymnast shares McKenna and three other kids with her ex-husband, Shannon Kelley.
Who Is Shannon Kelley?
Mary Lou and Shannon were married from 1990 to 2018. Prior to their union, he played football at the University of Texas from 1984 to 1988. The former professional athlete became a football coach later on in his career. Currently, Shannon serves as the assistant head coach of the Houston Baptist Huskies.
On October 29, 2018, Mary Lou publicly revealed that she and Shannon secretly split.
“I went through a divorce. People don’t know that. It’s the first time I’ve actually said it publicly,” the Dancing With the Stars alum said during an episode of the show. “It’s something that had really needed to happen for a long time. We still love one another, but we weren’t great together anymore.”
As for the reason behind their breakup, Mary Lou revealed that they simply “grew apart.”
Is Mary Lou Retton Married?
Mary Lou has not remarried since her divorce from Shannon. A few days after announcing their split, the West Virginia native revealed that she was looking forward to getting back out onto the dating scene.
“I’m on a really good path, and I’m happy with my life,” she told People in November 2018. “I’m really excited for what this new chapter is going to bring instead of being that scared person that I was a couple of months ago. I really have done a full turnaround.”
Who Are Mary Lou Retton’s Kids?
In addition to McKenna, who is a former gymnast, Mary Lou and Shannon welcomed daughters Shayla, Skyla and Emma. Mary Lou opened up about how her daughters handled the news of her divorce from Shannon.
“My daughters were amazing,” she recalled. “There’s that fine line between a daughter and a friend, so there’s a lot that I couldn’t share with them. They were angry in the beginning, and any child should be with their family being torn apart — but we’ve vowed that we would do holidays together and we’re going to try to make it as seamless and as painless as possible.”
What Happened to Mary Lou Retton?
McKenna took to her Instagram Stories to announce her mother’s illness and share a fundraising page in October 2023.
“My amazing mom, Mary Lou, has a very rare form of pneumonia and is fighting for her life,” a statement on the fundraising page read. “She is not able to breathe on her own. She’s been in the ICU for over a week now. Out of respect for her and her privacy, I will not disclose all details. However, I will disclose that she [is] not insured.”
By October 11, 2023, the fundraiser had amassed more than triple its $50,000 goal.
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