Olympic gold medalist,US gymnastics icon facing DUI charges

FAIRMONT, W.Va. — American gymnastics icon Mary Lou Retton faces a misdemeanor charge of driving under the influence following her arrest in her West Virginia hometown.

Fairmont police stopped Retton on May 17 following a report about a person in a Porsche driving erratically. According to the criminal complaint, Retton smelled of alcohol and was slurring her words, and she failed a field sobriety test. Officers also reported observing a container of wine in the passenger seat.

Retton, 57, refused a roadside breath test and a blood test. She was released from custody after paying a $1,500 personal recognizance bond.

Her attorney listed in court records, Edmund J. Rollo of Morgantown, did not immediately respond to phone and email requests from The Associated Press seeking comment.

Retton was 16 when she became the first American female gymnast to win the all-around at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. She also won two silver and two bronze medals to help bring gymnastics into the mainstream in the United States.

In 2023, Retton’s family disclosed she was recuperating from a rare form of pneumonia that landed her in intensive care. Doctors found her oxygen levels dangerously low. Her medical team considered putting her on a ventilator as her conditioned worsened. Retton went on oxygen treatment and, after weeks in the hospital, improved enough to be sent home.