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"My daughters stepped up to the plate, and they saved my life," the Olympic gold medalist said of her four daughters, who raised nearly $460,000 in donations after she was hospitalized for a rare form of pneumonia in October.
Mary Lou Retton is speaking out after her daughters were criticized for setting up a fundraiser to pay for medical bills from her pneumonia battle last year.
In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, published on Wednesday, the former Olympic gymnast defended her four daughters from the backlash they received over launching the crowdsourcing fund, and praised them for their support, saying they "saved [her] life."
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View StoryRetton, 56, said that she was experiencing financial hardship years before she was hospitalized for a rare form of pneumonia in October. The Olympic gold medalist shared that her struggles began with her 2018 divorce, and the situation progressed after the pandemic began and directly affected her job as a public speaker.
Then, last year, she was hospitalized in the ICU after contracting pneumonia, and the medical bills began piling up.
"I was in the ICU for a month, like, the bills were and are still coming in," Retton told ET.
The Olympian's daughter McKenna, 26 -- on behalf of herself and her three sisters: Shayla, 28, Skyla, 23, and Emma, 21, -- started a SpotFund campaign asking for donations to help with the hospital bills while Retton was fighting for her life in the ICU.
"I was sobbing, of course -- sobbing," she said, recalling her reaction when she learned about the fundraiser.
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However, Retton said her daughters received backlash over the campaign.
"They didn't deserve that. They were just trying to take care of me," she said of the criticism. "I don't care about the naysayers. There are trolls everywhere. It's what makes us America. Everybody’s got an opinion, but it is what it is."
The fundraiser had a goal of $50,000, but raised nearly $460,000 in donations, which came from almost 10,000 donors. Retton told ET that she's "grateful from one dollar to $25,000."
The former athlete went on to stress that the contributions will be going toward her medical bills, and added that any remaining funds will be donated to the American Lung Association.
"You can't imagine from ambulance bills to everything," Retton said. "I couldn't have done it without my daughters. I just couldn't have. I mean, I don't know where I'd be."
"You're welcome to your opinion, but you weren't in that situation," she added. "My daughters stepped up to the plate, and they saved my life and all the love and support saved my life, and these finances will only go to medical bills and I said what's left will go to the American Lung Association because I am now a member of the lung disease community."
Ultimately, Retton said she credits her daughters for being her source of inspiration amid her recovery journey.
"They just inspire me. You know, people always come up and say to me, 'Oh you inspired me' and this and that, but it’s my daughters who inspire me," she explained. "They were strong. I can't imagine them seeing me on my death bed, and I'm not exaggerating when I say that I was. They've shown me pictures of myself, and I didn't even look like me. They inspire me, and they do every day. They're extraordinary young women. They're my biggest accomplishments. Take my five medals. I'll take my daughters over that any time."
