As beloved as she was (and is!)
“I did three months' rehabilitation in 3 weeks,” Retton said.
Oh, how it hurt!
It hurt just to walk.
But I had to do it," as reported by theLos Angeles Times.
However, that was hardly the first physical hurdle she’d overcome.
Eventually, she had to have both of her hips replaced.
“It was literally eight hours every day.
Gymnastics is a very brutal sport, especially back in the 80s.
Our equipment was pretty unforgiving.
We would do 60 or 70 vaults a day and land on the hard surface.”
That would be enough to take a toll on anyone’s body.
To train with such focus and so far away from home, Retton dropped out of high school.
And Bela just got really mad at me.
He said, ‘Get back on the bar.’
I was just gushing blood.
I tried to get back on the bar.
I couldn’t do it.
So he said, ‘Okay, then get out of the gym!
You’re through!'"
It all ties in with Bela Karolyi and his wife Marta Karolyi.
“I went through a divorce,” Retton revealed.
“People don’t know that.
It’s the first time I’ve actually said it publicly,” as reported byPeople.
She and her husband Shannon Kelley had been married for 27 years and have four children together.
Retton talked about what it felt like for her marriage to come to an end.
Schrepfer kept people up to date about her mom’s condition on social media.
Kelley wrote of her mom, “She is not able to breathe on her own.
[…] she [is] not insured.”
It raised over $450,000.
Retton explained her lack of insurance during her Today appearance.
During the pandemic, Retton had fewer speaking engagements, which would have had an impact on her income.
She’d apparently been set to sign back up for health insurance shortly before she was hospitalized.
Here’s hoping the Olympic star has some easier years ahead of her!
