Michael Klim doesn't look like this anymore! Swimmer reveals surprising makeover as he shares up date on the rare autoimmune disorder which left him unable to walk

Daily Mail​

19-05-2025

Michael Klim has shared an update on his health - and his new look.
The Aussie swimming legend, 47, was diagnosed with the neurological disorder chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP) in 2020 and told The Project on Monday that he was doing well.
He also revealed his makeover, including a busy moustache and a goatee, both in a salt and pepper tone, which is a far cry from usually clean shaven face.
'I'm mixing it up. I had one look for 47 years. I had to come up with something different' the athlete joked.
Asked how he was doing in terms of his health battle, Michael was optimistic.
'I'm feeling really well. My life has stabilised physically and mentally' he explained, before answering a question on whether he was in any pain.
'My mobility is compromised. But I've got some great AFOs, are kind of prosthetics. Some of my favourite things like surfing and playing tennis are out of the question, but I had a ski for the first time in 12 years last year' he said.
Michael said there were 'a lot of things' he couldn't do, but many he could, and added that he was now focused on his foundation, The KLIM Foundation, which is raising funds and awareness for CIDP.
'With the foundation, it's what we're trying to do, enable a lot of sufferers, give them their life back' he said.
'Not only can we do it through blood donations, AFOs, having the right physio, having that support, and also counselling.'
Michael said counselling was a big part of what brought him
'Mentally coming out of the hole and realising that life still had a lot to give was probably the biggest win for me' he said.
The star earlier revealed that his biggest battle has been mental, not physical, as he grapples with a rare autoimmune disorder which left him unable to walk.
He told The Sunday Project that the 'mental toughness' he had as an athlete is something he had to rediscover to cope with his physical ailments.
'Pretty much all athletes are taught physically, mentally you push on. Even after sport, I adopted that same mindset,' he said.
'For me to be more vulnerable and listening to my body and my emotion is something that I'm still learning to do better and something that's helped me a lot.
He added: 'The biggest thing I had to overcome was accepting the new identity. I'm still in a lot of people's eyes the swimmer guy. And I used to rely on my physicality to give me a lot of mental toughness.
'Now that physicality is actually gone, I need to find other mental strength to overcome physical disabilities.'
Michael went on to say that as his illness progresses, he has grown to value time with his family above all else.
'It's actually changed my perspective on life. I really sort of value the time I have with my kids a lot more than I used to,' he said.
'It's brought my family much closer together. It's reignited a lot of friendships and relationships that I had in my life.'
Michael recently shared the devastating details of his 'tough' battle with CIDP.
The former Olympian has spoken openly about the challenging diagnosis, which saw him lose the ability to walk in just six months and left him bedridden.
CIDP causes the body to attack its own tissue - the myelin sheaths which insulate and protect the nerves - causing weakness and lack of feeling in the arms and legs.
Klim has detailed his 'tough' four-year battle with the disorder and spoke about the mental challenge of going from being an Olympian to not being able to walk.
Speaking at Drew Barrymore and Wanderlust's True North event in Sydney, Klim explained how his leg muscles began 'disappearing' as he deteriorated.
'I had a lot of neural symptoms early on - most people would get cold feet at nighttime or you'd get a tingling on your quad - but I started getting these random feelings in my legs and they started progressing and getting worse,' he shared.
'Towards the end, my legs would give way on me when I was walking back. All my other aches and pains started popping up even more, affecting my everyday lifestyle from my ankle to my back.
'I just almost got tipped over the edge, and within six months, I could not walk. I lost all functionality from the knees down, my muscles were literally just disappearing.
'As many races as I wanted to do, nothing was making them go and activating those muscles.'
Klim - who is now able to walk with the assistance of a cane - admitted the diagnosis also took a mental toll as he struggled to come to terms with his physical symptoms.
'It was really confronting mentally, not just physically,' he explained while speaking to press ahead of actress Drew's talk event at the ICC Theatre.
'I could look down and see these sticks hanging off my body, which for someone that used to pride myself on my physical ability, that was taken away within six months.'
Klim undergoes rehabilitation including plasma treatment, which has helped him to become more mobile by reducing inflammation and restoring nerve damage.
'The last two years have been OK, but the first two were pretty tough,' he confessed as he discussed the challenges of being diagnosed amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
He also praised his girlfriend Michelle Owen for her support as he admitted it has been a difficult journey.
Klim first unveiled his romance with DJ Michelle in October 2019, three years after his split from his model ex-wife Lindy Klim in 2016 after 10 years of marriage.
Swimmer Klim is arguably best known for his huge triumph at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games, where he took home gold for Australia.
In the 4x200m freestyle relay, Klim sent crowds wild when he broke the world record in the first leg of the race, setting his team up for triumph.
Alongside Ian Thorpe, Chris Fydler and Ashley Callus, Klim took the gold medal home, with the previously unbeaten Americans instead nabbing the silver.
The highly-regarded athlete retired from competitive swimming in 2007 and runs a successful swim school business in Bali.