Former gymnast Mary Lou Retton hit back at critics after her family raised nearly $500,000 to pay for her mounting medical bills, but refused to reveal where the money went.
The Olympic gold medalist, who was taken to hospital last October with a rare form of pneumonia, said her four daughters were “getting by.” [her] life” by creating a SpotFund account while she was in intensive care.
“I cried,” she said told Entertainment Tonight from the moment she discovered how much money her family had raised.
‘[But] They didn’t deserve that,” Retton continued, when asked about the response her daughters received after refusing to explain the amount of their mother’s entire medical bill.
“They were just trying to take care of me. I don’t care about the naysayers. There are trolls everywhere. It’s what makes us America. Everyone has an opinion, but it is what it is.’
Mary Lou Retton responded to critics after her family raised nearly $500,000 to pay her medical bills
“I don’t care about the naysayers. There are trolls everywhere,” the former gymnast said
Retton claimed her job opportunities dried up during the COVID-19 pandemic, and her finances took a hit after her 2018 divorce from former NFL star Shannon Kelley.
“There was no work at all, so I mean, it’s not like it used to be,” she said.
‘Let’s just say the height of my fame was years ago and I [was] just doing enough to get by, doing enough to pay my bills.”
Elsewhere in the interview, Retton emphasized that all of the money donated would go toward her medical bills, while the remaining money would be given to the American Lung Association.
Retton was left fighting for her life when she was hospitalized with a rare form of pneumonia
The athlete’s four daughters set up a SpotFund account while she was in intensive care
Retton’s family has not explained the amount of her medical bills
“You can’t imagine it, from ambulance bills to everything,” she said of the rising costs. ‘I couldn’t have done this without my daughters. I just couldn’t do that. I mean, I don’t know where I would be.”
The 56-year-old also addressed her critics directly, saying: ‘You are welcome with your opinions, but you were not in that situation. My daughters came along and they saved my life, and all the love and support saved my life.”
Retton, the first American woman to win the Olympic all-around title in 1984, previously revealed that her condition deteriorated so much that her four daughters said goodbye, fearing she would not make it through the night.
Retton said her condition deteriorated so much that her daughters said goodbye
Doctors told the sisters they did not know if their mother would survive the night
Doctors first approached eldest daughter Shayla and two of her sisters, McKenna and Skyla, to tell them they were considering “taking the next step” by putting Retton on “life support.”
Medics later told the trio to take their youngest sister, Emma, who was in college, to the hospital.
Neither Mary Lou nor any of her daughters have confirmed how much of the $459,324 crowdfunded has been spent on medical bills, or what amount has been or will be sent to charity.
During an interview last year, McKenna claimed her mother had no health insurance and could not afford care due to pre-existing conditions, including “more than 30 orthopedic surgeries, including four hip replacements.”