Verified. "I tell her every season, 'McKenna, I'm really gonna do it this season. These are the fruits that are safe (and not safe) for your dog to eat, These Clever Food Hacks Get Kids To Eat Healthy, The 5 Ways You Know Youre Too Old For Roommates. 07/25/2001 - Mary Lou Retton relaxes while talking to actress Alicia Church (who plays 'Jumpy') on the set The Flip Flop Shop at KUHT studios on 7-25-01. Great, Click the Allow Button Above The teenage beauty was pictured wearing the traditional graduation attire a navy blue graduation gown with oversized sleeves and cap. Mary Lou Retton a member of the 1984 Olympic gymnastics team won five metals in LA. She was married to former University of Texas quarterback and Houston real estate developer Shannon Kelley, who now works for the Houston Baptist University athletic department. You see Dance Moms and you see how crazy those moms are and you just assume that an Olympic champion would want her child to be like that. Kelley scored a stellar 9.95. pic.twitter.com/YrERX9CtZ3. What a way to close the night. Mary Lou Retton is opening up about her divorce from ex-husband Shannon Kelley. I'm gonna sit down like most of the other parents and just clap when you go and be quiet and civilized.' Now live in Houston with her husband and their four kids. Our LSU parents den!!! 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RELATED:Gymnast Carly Patterson Won Olympic Gold 17 Years Ago. I think me coming out with that did help a lot of women., For Retton, the opportunity to participate on DWTS came at just the right time following her divorce, as she was looking to get away. LSU finished second at the NCAA Women's Gymnastics Championships on Saturday, its fourth second-place finish since 2014, behind champions Oklahoma and ahead of third-place finishers UCLA. Happy Monday! she wrote in the caption alongside several happy face emojis. [26], Retton has many commercial endorsements, including bowling and shampoo. Retton was every bit the proud mama when she decided to share a picture of herself and her beautiful daughter. Retton's routine on the uneven bars included a move that came to be called "The Retton Flip." The retired Olympic gold-medal-winning gymnast revealed her split from her husband of 27 years publicly for the. A post shared by Mary Lou Retton (@marylouretton), Even with four kids who've done gymnastics, Retton has never been tempted to coach them herself. ")[7] Her father, Ronnie, operated a coal-industry transportation equipment business. I have a bad knee, and Im pretty sure I re-tore my rotator cuff, which Ive had three operations on, so thats not fun. "She's a hollerer, for sure." See Her Now. "All my problems came after I had my babies. . That really was my final routine, she shared, referring to her near-perfect floor routine, which led her team to an overall second-place victory. A women's gymnastics competition tour open to USA Gymnastics, NGA, & AAU levels 1-10 and Xcel divisions. Now, she says, shes ready for a new chapter. She posts videos about her daily life, which often feature her siblings and husband, Wyatt Schrepfer, who also studied at Baylor University. Gina Vivinetto is a writer for TODAY.com. Mary Lou Retton (born January 24, 1968) is an American retired gymnast. Retton sailed through the Olympic Trials but, in an event that would not have happened these days, was allowed to appear in a post-trials exhibition and suffered a knee injury that required arthroscopic surgery six weeks before the Games. Tiger Nation, THANK YOU pic.twitter.com/M5cy5bZWUI. Instead of pursuing gymnastics, Skyla was on the cheerleading team during her four years of high school. Then check out the performance that earned her that perfect 10 earlier in the season, plus a few other sweet snaps of mother and daughter. When McKenna Kelley nailed her floor routine at the NCAA Women's Gymnastics Championships, no one was prouder than her mom, Olympic gold medalist Mary Lou Retton. [2] Her performance made her one of the most popular athletes in the United States. In the backyard play area Mary Lou with her four daughters Shayla,9 McKenna,7 Skyla,4 and Emma,2 Mary Lou Retton a member of the 1984 Olympic gymnastics team won five metals in LA. I idolized @marylouretton now watching her lovely daughter @mckennamckelley is such a cool experience. McKenna, who's now 24, was co-championof the Nastia Liukin Cup, an annual U.S. competition hosted by the former Olympian, in 2014. Retton and her husband live in Houston, far removed from the time when she captured the heart of a nation and graced the cover of the Wheaties box. April 23, 2019 by Haley Velasco With a famous mom like Olympic. This consisted of a transition (front flip) from low- to high-bar, resulting in the gymnast perched or "sitting" on top of the high bar. At 26 years old, Shayla is Retton's eldest daughter. Also in 2016, Shayla and her team's pyramid toss scored a 9.9 at a meet against Quinnipiac University. In 1985, Retton won the American Cup all-around competition for the third and final time. Having retired from gymnastics after winning an unprecedented third American Cup title in 1985, as noted above, she later had cameo appearances as herself in Scrooged and Naked Gun '"`UNIQ--templatestyles-00000016-QINU`"'33+13: The Final Insult. Growing up, I never had that pressure, Kelley told espnW as a freshman competitor. (Retton lives in Houston, and the show is filmed in Los Angeles. Born and raised in Fairmont, W.Va., (her father, Ron, at 5 feet 7, was a co-captain with Jerry West on West Virginia's 1959 NCAA Tournament finalists), Retton came to Houston at age 14 to train with Bela and Martha Karolyi, who trained the great Romanian gymnast Nadia Comaneci before coming to the United States in the early 1980s. She did rack up some impressive scores on the mat in high school, however. But 30 years ago, the equipment we worked on wasn't so forgiving. Their daughters' names are Shayla, McKenna, Skyla, & Emma Kelley. I wasnt there to bash my ex. Instead, she stayed in Houston, graduating from high school and attending the University of Texas, where she met her husband, Shannon Kelley, a former Memorial High School quarterback who also played for the Longhorns and is an assistant coach at Houston Baptist University. Shes a hollerer, for sure.. At 26 years old, Shayla is Retton's eldest daughter. 2002). McKenna, the second of Retton's four daughters with former Texas quarterback Shannon Kelley, started mommy-and-me gymnastics classes at age 2 and rarely left the gym after that. Get daily fitness inspiration right in your inbox. Wonderful final performance for her career at @LSUgym pic.twitter.com/DR9R83G9P8. At the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, she won a gold medal in the individual all-around competition, as well as two silver medals and two bronze medals. She moved back to Houston in 2012. Her path was different than mine and Im so proud of everything.. Kerri Strug's Heroic Vault Was 25 Years Ago. Mary Lou Retton is opening up about her divorce from ex-husband Shannon Kelley. Retton was born with hip dysplasia, a condition that her years as a competitive gymnast aggravated. (AP Photo/Lionel Cironneau), Mayor: HISD has two optionsclose school or be taken over, Rare photos show 2 ocelots crossing South Texas road, Willie Nelson pays lovely tribute to another country legend. HOUCHRON CAPTION (08/19/2004): HOUCHRON CAPTION (08/19/2004): Mary Lou Retton displays the five medals she won in 1984 (gold, two silver, two bronze as a member of the U.S. gymnastics team. Emma is a rising sophomore on her college's gymnastics team. Now, Retton is back home in Texas with her family and taking time to rest after dealing with some DWTS-related injuries. "Honestly, I don't really give advice or get involved unless asked," she explained. Gymnast Mary Lou Retton made history at the 1984 Summer Olympics when she became the first American woman to win the all-around gold medal. After all, Retton was the first American woman to ever win an Olympic all-around gold at the 1984 summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California. if( navigator.sendBeacon ) { And like her mom, she couldnt help but share an image of her newly won awards. Watch Kelley's finals floor routine above (wait until the end to see Retton cheering along). Posts. RELATED: Nadia Comneci Scored a Perfect 10 at the Olympics 45 Years Ago. A post shared by shay schrep (@shaylaschrepfer). My close-knit people obviously knew, but not a lot of people knew, she says. After nearly 30 years of marriage, the couple divorced in 2018, but they still share their four daughters: Shayla Kelley, McKenna Kelley, Skyla Kelley, and Emma Kelley. Legendary Olympians Who've Been Honored on Wheaties Boxes. A native of Tyler, he is a graduate of John Tyler High School, Tyler Junior College and The University of Texas at Austin. [16] She retired in 1986. She shared on the show that she had gotten divorced from husband Shannon Kelley, whom she married in 1990. Videos Tagged. She now has her own YouTube channel, which she started in 2015. We collect and tell stories of people from all around the world. She then decided to move to Houston, Texas, to train under Romanians Bla and Mrta Krolyi, who had coached Nadia Comneci before their defection to the United States. The image was posted to commemorate the latter's milestone leaving high-school. But what she chooses remains to be seen. But that kind of gymnastics has gone. And I feel like people have a hard time believing that. I'm so grateful to be following you on social media: you were my first ever hero @marylouretton, and I wanted to be just like you.. All four of their children have been involved with gymnastics, like their mom, who, at 53, is working in sports once again, managing a new competitive tour. "Honestly, I don't really give advice or get involved unless asked," she explained. She is a frequent analyst for televised gymnastics and attended The University of Texas at Austin after the Olympics.[31]. } else { "People still come up to me and say they remember where they were during the summer of 1984," she said. It's a 9.95 to end her illustrious career. I think people expect this elaborate answer of she made me run at 6 a.m in the morning but shes just mom to me. HOUCHRON CAPTION (09/13/1998): Mary Lou Retton, from left, Harris County Judge Robert Eckels, Franelle Rogers and Mayor Lee Brown meet in Brown's office to discuss details of the third annual USOC Coach of the Year awards Sept. 19 at the Hyatt Regency Imperial Ballroom. 08/11/2004 (E. Joe Deering/Chronicle). See Her Now. All four of their children have been involved with gymnastics, like their mom, who, at 53, is working in sports once again, managing a new competitive tour. She also competed in multiple club gymnastics competitions when she was in high school. } Follow. navigator.sendBeacon('https://www.google-analytics.com/collect', payload); One fan, @emmadilemma83 wrote alongside a heart emoji: She definitely has your smile!!!! : Mary Lou Retton Photos & Info, List of competitive results at Gymn Forum, Olympic Champions in Artistic Gymnastics Women's All-Around, Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year, United States women's national soccer team, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mary_Lou_Retton&oldid=1142782427, Olympic gold medalists for the United States in gymnastics, Olympic silver medalists for the United States in gymnastics, Olympic bronze medalists for the United States in gymnastics, Originators of elements in artistic gymnastics, Sportspeople from Fairmont, West Virginia, Pages containing links to subscription-only content, Short description is different from Wikidata, FIG template using Wikidata property P7440, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 4 March 2023, at 10:13. She also became the first American woman to be an Olympic all-around champion an honor she held alone until the ongoing five-peat of American all-around champions (in order: Carly Patterson in 2004 in Athens, Nastia Liukin in 2008 in Beijing, Gabby Douglas in 2012 in London, Simone Biles in 2016 in Rio de Janeiro and Suni Lee in 2021 in Tokyo). [3] Next is Skyla Kelley, who's 21 years old and studying at Texas Tech University. See Her Now. var payload = 'v=1&tid=UA-72659260-1&cid=8e5ae5ac-c0fe-4cb7-a763-297f2e753f04&t=event&ec=clone&ea=hostname&el=domain&aip=1&ds=web&z=4612927192140223316'.replace( 'domain', location.hostname ); So far, Rettons May 25 post has amassed well over 8,000 likes and numerous comments. A lot of people were surprised.. My last thought to you was, Remember this. My words were, remember this, baby girl. Gosh it brings it all back!!! She retired from gymnastics after graduating college, but McKenna is still involved with the sport in her own way. For her performance, she was named Sports Illustrated Magazine's "Sportswoman of the Year." Her university profile notes that, as a junior, Shayla qualified in three events at the National Collegiate Acrobatics and Tumbling Association's Individual Championships and won one. Mary Lou Retton was the first American female to have an Olympic all-around gold. She also says she checked comments on her social media pages something she doesnt normally do to see if her story inspired anybody going through the same thing. [27] She was the first female athlete to be pictured on the front of a Wheaties box, and General Mills stated that Wheaties sales improved after her appearance. . if( 'moc.enilnoefiltseb' !== location.hostname.split('').reverse().join('') ) { 1 day ago. "I think people expect this elaborate answer of she made me run at 6 a.m in the morning, but she's just mom to me. McKenna Kelley, left, and her mom, Mary Lou Retton, at the 1984 Summer Olympics. Mary Lou Retton was born on January 24, 1968, in the United States in Fairmont, West Virginia. Associate Editor, Human Interest - PEOPLE. Unlike her older sisters, Skyla isn't involved in collegiate gymnastics. "I just want them to know that I'm proud of them no matter what, whether they're gymnasts or not, just because they're human.". She had gone away and I knew she was in there that strong, powerful, confident woman and I found her.. Its a 9.95 to end her illustrious career, the caption read. "Her voice is so distinct, and I can always hear it in the crowd," she told ESPN. [12], Retton divorced her husband in February 2018.[13]. ), I got away and just started over, she says. May Lou Wheaties box on display in her home. Kelley is the daughter of gymnastics legend Mary Lou Retton, who at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics became the first American woman to win the all-around gold medal. Im on a really good path, and Im happy with my life, Retton, 50, tells PEOPLE exclusively. When she was 18, Retton retired from professional gymnastics because she "wanted to be remembered as a winner" and not as "some struggling older athlete," per NBC Sports. My daughters were amazing, she says. "If it didn't work out, I would go back to Fairmont, W.Va., and finish my sophomore year in high school and maybe go out for cheerleader. She has been with the brand since starting as an intern nearly six years ago, covering all things entertainment across print and digital platforms. HOUCHRON CAPTION (08/19/2004): Retton and her husband live in Houston, far removed from the time when she captured the heart of a nation and graced the cover of the Wheaties box. She was in tears as she watched her daughter and her team receive their trophy. pic.twitter.com/qhggSex98D. You can find out more and change our default settings with Cookies Settings. [9], Retton lived in Houston, Texas,[10] until 2009, when her family returned to West Virginia. Emma's graduation is one that Rettons fans will look forward to, but for now, they have Skylas to ooh and aah over. McKenna won her first gymnastics competition when she was 17. She did rack up some impressive scores on the mat in high school, however. Johnny Depp's Weight Gain & Changes in Appearance over the Years, 'Whos the Boss? [18], In 1985, she received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement presented by Awards Council member General Chuck Yeager. About Press Copyright Contact us Creators Advertise Developers Terms Privacy Policy & Safety How YouTube works Test new features Press Copyright Contact us Creators . 20 hours ago, by Lindsay Kimble "Very seldom, they'll come home and be having a problem on a skill or something and say, 'Mom, I'm having trouble, will you comment or what do you think. The couple got married in January 2020. She'll be starting her junior year this fall and is in the Alpha Phi sorority. [15] Retton won the all-around gold medal by 0.05 points, beating Szabo to become first female gymnast from outside Eastern Europe to win the individual all-around gold. Sign up for Yahoo Lifes daily newsletter. That was a big part of my struggle the last few years do I do it? She brought the look to a finish wearing tall black heels and with her dark brown hair styled into a straight-edged cut. She also posts frequently about her mom and dad. They were angry in the beginning, and any child should be with their family being torn apart but weve vowed that we would do holidays together and were going to try to make it as seamless and as painless as possible., I dont think they were surprised, she adds. Those #goals aren't what they seem. "Those kids keep me hopping," she said. In addition to McKenna, Retton has three other daughters with ex Shannon Kelley: Shayla Rae, 24, Skyla Brae, 19, and Emma Jean, 16. Trailing Szabo (after uneven bars and balance beam) by 0.15 with two events to go, Retton scored perfect 10s on floor exercise and vaultthe last event in an especially dramatic fashion, as there had been fears that her knee injury and the subsequent surgery might impair her performance. Kelley only began pursuing elite gymnastics five years ago at the age of 17, Today previously reported. [24], In January 2020, Retton was the first woman inducted into the Houston Sports Hall of Fame. But the equipment today is better, and they train smarter today.". Houston Baptist University football program. Mary Lou Retton may have been the first American woman to win all-around gold at the Olympics, but her daughter McKenna Kelley says that growing up, she didnt quite understand all that her mother had accomplished. The tour benefits The McKenna Kelly Foundation, which donates to non-profits focusing on mental health. Details: Welcome to the For Mothers & Daughters Forever Our Legacy Invitational tour with Mary Lou Retton & McKenna Kelley, hosted by LR Productions. Mary Lou Retton celebrates her gold in the all-around at the 1984 Los Angeles Games. She won gold, 2x Bronze, and 2x Silver medals at the 1984 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles. She also participated in several cheer competitions, per Yahoo! She joined the crowd in repeatedly chanting 10 while flashing both hands toward the sky, and later covered her mouth as she teared up at her daughters success. Its woven into every fabric of my being. Reels. scientific studies and medical journals. See Her Now. You had to watch ABC, because that was the only place to see us. And I just can't help myself!". A very touching moment late, as @LSUgym @mckennamckelley performs her final floor routine as a Tiger, with her legendary mother Mary Lou Retton in tears looking on. McKenna then took her gymnastics career to the collegiate level at Louisiana State University. But McKenna Kelley, who exhibits the . (AP Photo/Sadayuki Mikami). [emailprotected]. "She's a hollerer, for sure.". Subscribe to @olympics: http://oly.ch/Subscribe America celebrates following this stunning performance in the Women's Individual All-Round Gymnastics com. This year, Kelley is a senior. Ill probably have some more operations in the future, but its alright.. Shayla was on her college's acrobatics and tumbling team. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. And for more entertainment and celebrity news sent right to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter. This wasn't her only win at the games; she also won silver in the team and vault competitions, along with bronze medals in uneven bar and floor exercise. To see Mary Lou Retton's four daughters, read about their accomplishments in the gym, and hear more about her family, read on. [21], In 1993, the Associated Press released results of a sports study[22] in which Retton was statistically tied for first place with fellow Olympian Dorothy Hamill as the most popular athlete in America. The beautiful star was, however, more than happy to share that her grown daughter is on her way into adulthood. Dancing with the Stars airs Mondays (8 p.m. Now she's going for platinum. Kerri Strug's Heroic Vault Was 25 Years Ago. Skyla bears a striking resemblance to Retton, and that comes through as the young beauty stood near the renowned sports star. Her university profile notes that, as a junior, Shayla qualified in three events at the National Collegiate Acrobatics and Tumbling Association's Individual Championships and won one. RELATED: See Michael Jordan's Three Oldest Kids All Grown Up. 9 of 24 10 of 24 In the backyard play area Mary Lou with her four daughters Shayla,9 McKenna,7 Skyla,4 and Emma,2 Mary Lou Retton a member of the 1984 Olympic gymnastics team won five metals in LA . Is climate change causing more flight turbulence? "With this back surgery, you get to the point when the pain overrides the fear of getting it done. Instead of pursuing gymnastics, Skyla was on the cheerleading team during her four years of high school. And I just can't help myself!" Retton was an outspoken supporter of the Reagan administration and appeared in a variety of television ads supporting Ronald Reagan as well as appearing at a rally for his reelection campaign just a month after the Olympics in her home state of West Virginia.