Mary Lou Retton won the All-Around Gold medal in women’s gymnastics in the 1984 Olympic games – the first American woman to ever win
a gold medal in gymnastics. But by the time she had reached her late 30s, Retton was living in constant pain from hip dysplasia. She was just 37 when she had to have her left hip replaced. “She’s very vocal about (her hip replacement.) She’s bringing more awareness to the area, that this can happen to younger people,” said Grace Ban, executive director of the Arthritis Foundation of Southern Maryland. Retton will be an arthritis ambassador at the Foundation’s annual Annapolis Walk for Arthritis Saturday morning at Quiet Waters Park. “It lets the community know that celebrities do get arthritis, too, and having a celebrity always builds momentum,” Ban said. She is expecting around 500 people for the event. “Here we’ve got a young person, she’s very young, (and) she’s had a hip replacement,” said Mary Major, chairwoman of the walk for the past 15 years. “But then (she) has bounced back.”
Retton will speak about her own experience with a hip replacement, walk the 1-kilometer route with Mayor Ellen Moyer and demonstrate warmups with Major before the event.