Swim champ Michael Klim’s devastating update on rare disorder and how it’s left him trapped in Bali

Swimming legend Michael Klim has provided a surprising update on his battle with a rare neurological condition, revealing that he can no longer travel to Australia due to his deteriorating condition.

Speaking to former Olympic teammate Brett Hawke on his popular podcast, Klim – who was diagnosed with chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP) in 2020 – he also confirmed he is under financial stress after resigning from his role in his successful skincare line due to his illness.

The father of three revealed that his mobility is now so compromised that he can no longer leave his adopted home of Bali and travel to Australia, as he previously did several times a year for both work and treatment.

“I’ve turned my attention to the swimming academy here in Bali and… we have a number of camps and clinics,” said the 45-year-old.

“From that point of view, I’ve simplified my lifestyle a bit.

“I mean, I used to make round trips to Australia 20 times a year for work and whatever.

“But for now it’s just physically… physically impossible because (for) myself is not easy.”

Klim said he is no longer working for Milk & Co. works because of the demands his autoimmune disease places on his physical and mental well-being.

Klim founded the skincare range in 2008 and had a sales and marketing position and a primary stakeholder.

However, he says his inability to travel meant he had to step back from day-to-day business — a factor that has added a new element of financial stress.

“Look, it definitely put a strain on our finances and security because there’s an investment level for me,” Klim said in the podcast.

“I stepped back from my role at Milk and Co. because of the physical strain, flying back and forth and stress.

‘I was very handy in sales and marketing. (But) unless I could give myself one hundred percent, I didn’t want to do it.

“So there’s definitely a few things I’ve done in the last 13 years that I’ve had to withdraw a lot from and that includes an income level.”

And in another blow, Klim also revealed that his original health insurance plan doesn’t cover CIDP — a condition characterized by progressive weakness and reduced sensory function in the legs and arms.

As a result, his treatment is now fully self-funded — another hurdle that, he says, has placed a different financial burden on both him and his family.

“Yeah, it was pretty stressful,” he said.

‘Unfortunately, unless you have very good insurance, which unfortunately mine doesn’t cover, everything is self-funded, so I think it’s put a fair amount of pressure on everyone.

“I’ve had a lot of support from the family, but it’s, yeah, it’s not easy.”

Initially, Klim revealed his shocking diagnosis in July when he appeared on The Project, explaining how he first started noticing symptoms in 2019, including numbness in his legs and loss of function in his feet.

The retired swimmer began treatment a year later, but was forced to face the harsh reality of the rare condition – one of which is the possibility that he may eventually lose his ability to walk and will have to rely on a wheelchair.

Speaking to Hawke this week, Klim revealed that the condition had worsened in recent months and that the original numbness in his feet has now moved to his calf muscles and knees.

“Right now it’s kind of on my knees,” Klim said, adding that he now wears leg rests, in addition to using crutches and a cane to get around.

“I had a big drop foot… my foot is just very floppy and can’t control my foot, so I have to wear special braces called EFOs (ankle foot orthoses) that hold my toes up so I don’t tripping over myself using a cane or crutches.’

Klim, who was one of Australia’s strongest swimmers during his reign in the 1990s and 2000s, admits he now fears the worst – that he will eventually lose all physical mobility.

“I think there’s definitely an element of fear here, because it’s the fear of the unknown, which we’re always afraid of, you know,” said an emotional Klim.

“So there’s 30 percent of the patients (who) end up in a wheelchair and it’s just getting around. So that’s in the back of my mind.’

Despite his setbacks, the six-time Olympic medalist says he remains determined to fight CIDP and will continue to seek treatment from some of the top neurological experts in Australia and around the world, including the Mayo Clinic in the US, which has a is a leader in the treatment of the disease.

Most importantly, he says, he can still do some pool activities and have regular upper body swim sessions while holding a pool buoy between his legs.

“What gives me so much joy right now is that I can still jump in the pool and float around a bit,” Klim said.

“I like to put a buoy in and knock out a few times, and yes, it’s kind of my happy place right now.”

A distraught Hawke — who also competed in Australia at two Olympics and now runs the Inside With Brett Hawke podcast — seemed to come out of the conversation and say to his friend, “Oh man, I don’t even know where to go.”

Klim had a monumental impact on global swimming prior to his retirement in 2007.

The highlight undoubtedly came with the Australian team’s gold medal-winning performance in the 4x100m freestyle relay at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, which remains one of the sport’s most iconic moments.

Klim, Thorpe, Ashley Callus and Chris Fydler defeated an outspoken American team that had said before the race to ‘crush the Australian team like guitars’.

A great comeback in Thorpe’s anchor leg led them to victory, and the side celebrated their gold by playing air guitars on the pool deck.