Mary Lou Retton was once the 'most famous woman in America' after her perfect 10 in LA... now, 40 years on, she's facing fury over $500k donation row

Almost 40 years have passed since the famous Olympic routine which turned Mary Lou Retton into an overnight sensation and captured American hearts.

At the 1984 Games in Los Angeles, 4ft 9in gymnastics superstar Retton vaulted her way to gold with a perfect score of 10; becoming the first American in history to come out on top in the women’s individual all-around event.

In fact, she became the first American woman to win a gymnastics medal full stop.

Such a historic success at just 16 years of age propelled the tiny teenager from Fairmont to newfound levels of fame; with Retton and her teammates going on to enjoy a party at the house of famed entertainer Bob Hope before the celebrations continued at Disneyland, a meeting with President Ronald Regan and a ticker-tape parade in New York City.

For Mary Lou alone, the historic gold medal convinced Wheaties to make her the first ever female athlete to feature on the front of its popular cereal box, while Sports Illustrated also named her their Sportswoman of the Year.

Just like that Retton had been catapulted to the forefront of American popular culture. By the end of her crowning year, she was arguably the most famous woman in the country.

The 40th anniversary of that 10-out-of-10 display in LA is all the more poignant this year given the challenges and controversy Retton has faced over the past eight months.

Back in October, the Olympic legend was left fighting for her life in hospital with a rare form of pneumonia after being found lying on her bedroom floor struggling to breathe by a neighbor.

The 56-year-old fortunately recovered from the illness, despite her four daughters even saying their goodbyes at one stage out of fear she wouldn't make it through the night.

Retton's children set up a SpotFund account when their mother was fighting for her life in an ICU, calling on members of the public to help them with medical costs after claiming she did not have insurance.

In the end, that account brought in an estimated $500,000 in donations - only for the family to refuse to disclose where the money went amid scrutiny over their claims to be without medical insurance. 

'They didn't deserve that,' Retton said about the criticism aimed at her daughters earlier this year.

'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. Everybody's got an opinion, but it is what it is.' 

Prior to her recovery - and the subsequent backlash over the SpotFund donations - 40 years on from LA 1984 America found itself rooting for Retton again, this time as she battled against pneumonia in hospital.

Just like all those years ago, when she toppled Ecaterina Szabo of Romania to clinch gold, the iconic ex-gymnast showed her resolve by pulling through and overcoming the illness.

Szabo headed to the 1984 Games as the pre-competition favorite in the women's individual all-around event, and heading into her final event - the vault - only a perfect 10 would be enough for the gold medal.

After promising coach Bela Karolyi that she would come up trumps, Retton twisted through the air and executed a double Tsukahara - consisting of a half turn off the springboard and onto the vault table followed by a push backwards - before pulling off a impeccable landing.

A perfect '10.00' then flashed on the scoreboard as an ecstatic Retton hugged Karolyi in jubilation, in disbelief at the size of the achievement she had just completed.

'I knew the takeoff was good,' she told reporters at the time. 'And I knew the vault was good. And I knew I'd stick it.'

'Biggest vault ever,' Karolyi added.

Nevertheless, one caveat to Mary Lou's record-breaking triumph - and one she is still well aware of to this day - is that luck was on her side with no Soviet gymnasts at the 1984 Games in LA. 

The Soviets boycotting those Games along with several of their allies at the time meant she was spared the task of competing with some of the strongest gymnasts on the planet, including the reigning individual all-around world champion.

The highly-regarded Romanians, including Szabo, were present in California however, and Retton refuses to dock herself any credit. 'It was a big battle,' she said. 'I earned my medal.'

As previously noted, USA's newest Olympic superstar was everywhere after her crowning moment. She appeared on countless movies, TV shows - including popular ballroom dancing show 'Dancing With The Stars' - and gymnastic tours as well as Wheaties boxes and Sports Illustrated magazine.

Retton was an instant household name on the back of her LA heroics. 'It was so immediate, and intensely so,' 1984 U.S. women's gymnastics team captain Kathy Johnson said in 2021 about her dramatic rise in prominence.

'We were in L.A., after all, the entertainment capital of the world. It exploded in the biggest, most dramatic way, partly because this is America. It just grew exponentially.'

To this day, Retton remains one of the most iconic and recognizable figures in US sport.

When taking her four daughters to gymnastics classes, the former Olympic champion aims to keep a low profile and remain anonymous to others in attendance. But it never lasts long.

'They knew it was me,' USA Today's Christine Brennan recalled her saying in October of last year.

Three decades since she was voted 'Most Popular Athlete in America', Retton will watch on as the new breed of US gymnasts strive for glory in Paris this summer.

Four-time gold medalist Simone Biles will hope to invoke the spirit of Mary Lou and add more to her collection, including in the all-around event, with trials still ongoing to discover who will join her at the 2024 Games.

Whichever athletes make it, it was Retton who laid the foundations and paved the way for them to achieve their Olympic dreams all those years ago in LA.

'She changed the landscape of not just gymnastics, but I think women in sports,' Johnson added. 'It literally transported us to a whole new level.'