At the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics uneven bars final, Ma was suffered from Appendicitis, though in great pain she insisted on finishing the competition.

Ma's best event was unquestionably the uneven bars; she placed first on this apparatus at the age of fifteen at the 1979 World Championships.

The dismount she pioneered, a hecht-front salto-full now known as the Ma, is valued as an "F," the second highest difficulty rating possible, in the current Code of Points.

[4] After retiring from gymnastics, Ma pursued a University education and spent some time in the UK and the United States, coaching at clubs in California.

She also owns a Japanese restaurant in Beijing and has worked as a commentator for various gymnastics competitions, including the 1999 World Championships in Tianjin.