Page "Carly Patterson" Paragraph 12

Soon after the Olympic games ended, it was discovered that Patterson had several bulging disks in her lower back that had gone unnoticed.

She announced her intention to take time off from the sport to rehabilitate her back, but she officially retired from the sport in 2006 without ever participating in another major competition.

She recalled the decision in a 2009 interview, saying, " I started having some back issues, and honestly, my doctor was like, ‘ Carly, you really need to stop if you want to be able to walk when you get older ’.... So I retired and moved on to singing .” Her coach said in a TV interview, " It's hard to top an all-around gold.