Michael Klim

OUR STRAIGHT MATES With Matthew Myers

Mr milk.

Michael Klim won gold at the Sydney Olympics, married a princess and now has his own skin care range. Matt Myers spoke to the swimming star about sport and sexuality, wardrobe malfunctions and his surprise foray into the beauty market.

34 DNA

DNA: How did you come up with the name Milk for your skin care range?

Michael Klim: Milk has been staring me in the face for years – it’s my surname backwards.

Skin care was something I kind of fell into. I’ve always used products throughout my swimming career, especially being in chlorinated pools and the outdoors. For me it’s quite normal, and my goal is to educate guys about using skin care products.

Do you consider yourself a metrosexual or is it just the European background?

Well, my parents always say that when I was quite young I was very particular about matching my clothes! In Europe, especially in Italy and France, men look after themselves a lot more. Self-presentation and appearance is really important.

Your shaving balm has a great peppermint aroma. What do you think is the best shaving method?

I don’t have very thick stubble so in the past I used electric shavers, but I get bored with things so I moved on to gels and foams. But Milk is quite unique because you don’t have to over-apply water. You just apply it straight onto the skin and shave. It’s oil-based so it replenishes the skin and acts as a moisturiser.

And it has this amazing menthol fragrance.

Completely unrelated, but by the same name, have you seen the movie Milk?

Yeah, it’s a great movie and an amazing story.

We actually supplied some Milk samples at the pre-screening of the film here in Melbourne.

Do you have any gay mates?

Yeah, I have quite a few. My wife is from the fashion industry so a lot of her gay friends have become my friends and vice versa with my friends in the swimming fraternities.

Who would you turn gay for?

Good question… Daniel Craig’s pretty hot. He’s got good pecs! He’s pretty cool in Layer Cake, too, and that’s one of my favourite movies.

Have you heard gay rumours about yourself?

No, not really. My wife jokes about it as she thinks I might be [laughs]. I was on the cover of Outrage magazine back in ’98. I had a good following!

That’s fantastic! And that was back before it was cool for straight guys to be doing that sort of thing.

Yeah, I have nothing against it. A lot of people get paranoid but for me it was great to have that kind of support from the gay community.

There has always been stigma around openly gay players in the sporting arena. Given recent events, such as Matthew Mitcham’s success, do you think the tide has turned?

I think men have felt uncomfortable about coming out in many sports. Times have changed, which is great to see.

Matthew Mitcham has been an incredible inspiration to the gay community. Do you think he’s seen in a similar way in the

sporting arena?

Definitely. I think Australia fell in love with him. My wife certainly did! I know that when she met him she wanted to take him home!

He’s so likeable.

Can you describe the feeling of marching in an Olympic ceremony?

I’ve never marched in an opening ceremony because swimming is always on the first day.

But I’ve marched out to closing a few times and it feels quite euphoric. It’s the end of a four-year block of hard work. Even if you’ve had bad results or disappointments, there’s still a sense of accomplishment and it’s quite special. I had some really good friends to share it with like Grant Hackett, Ian Thorpe, Todd Pearson, Brett Hawke, Daniel Kowalski… they were all my close mates and we were on the same journey.

What is the most embarrassing thing that has happened to you in the pool?

With the way the suits are these days, I’ve had a couple of wardrobe malfunctions. I’ve had a few seams go in the most awkward of places. But I’ve been lucky enough to jump out of the pool and quickly disappear. It’s not a good look!

You would no doubt have met many sporting icons. Are there any personal favourites?

My heroes growing up were Boris Becker and Andre Agassi. But I was lucky enough to meet Duncan Armstrong and Kieren Perkins, who I looked up to as a swimmer. I met Edwin Moses, the 400-metre hurdler, and got to know him really well. He’s such an inspiration and was unbeaten in 20 years. Everyone’s special in a way, but he’s probably the most inspirational.

You got to meet Ricky Martin at the height of his fame. What was that experience like?

It was backstage at one of his Sydney concerts.

It was a buzz but a bit awkward because we were put into a room and then he came around for a chit chat.

Didn’t you say it was like meeting the Queen?

[Laughs] We were standing in a line like that but I have met the Queen, too. She came out after the Olympics and I was invited to Government House in Canberra with 40 other guests. It was an amazing dinner with people like Dawn Fraser, Bart Cummings and General Cosgrove. It was surreal. I was really impressed with the Queen. She was very clued-on about the sport and the suits. She knew about Thorpie and everybody. She’s obviously a welltravelled lady.

What’s the campest song on your iPod? Rivers Of Babylon by Boney M! Your wife Lindy is a Balinese princess. Does that make you some kind of prince?

[Laughs] No, it makes me a slave! The servant!

Some people go on holidays and expect the royal treatment, but when you go to Bali that must have a whole different meaning. Once we’ve let the royal family know that we’re coming, there are a few royal ceremonies that

we have to do. But the royal family is so vast over there that it’s not really a big deal. As soon as Lindy says her full name then people will treat her differently but otherwise they wouldn’t recognise her. So we’re still just normal tourists.

An Olympic gold medal is one of the highest accolades you can receive. What do you strive for now?

I guess success in business is my next goal.

Milk is a growing brand but I’d like for it to be an independent international skin care label.

So you’re trying to milk Milk!

[Laughs] I’m trying to milk myself at the moment. I’ll milk my profile for everything it’s got!

Who has been your biggest sporting influence?

I had an amazing coach, a Russian guy called Gennadi Touretsky. I guess he was my mentor.

I moved out of home at 16 and went to live in Canberra at the Australian Institute Of Sport. He was probably the biggest influence on my swimming career. My parents, being Polish migrants, were always looking for opportunities for me, too. So I have them to thank for that.

You have a great looking tattoo on your arm.

What’s the story behind it?

It’s a Balinese design. I was born in the year of the snake so I’ve got a snake that wraps around my arm. It’s still not finished, but I’m working on it.

Go to milkskincare.com for more.

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