Disgraced Olympics great Marion Jones now struggles to walk stairs
A former Olympic champion has provided her followers with a worrying health update, showing off the toll her career has had on her.
Olympics drugs cheat Marion Jones has claimed her knees are “hanging on by a thread” after posting a concerning video showing her struggling to walk down a flight of stairs.
The 50-year-old won three gold medals at the Sydney Olympic Games in 2000 after becoming the world’s fastest woman at the time following her 100m success.
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But she had her medals stripped from her in 2007 after she was found to have performance enhancing drugs in her system.
One year later, the American athlete was sentenced to six months in prison for lying about her use of steroids.
Jones has suffered a number of personal issues in the years since her release in September.
In 2020, she was diagnosed with an auto-immune disease called neuromyelitis optica.
The disease temporarily paralysed her and initially left her unable to walk.
The former sprinter was a three-time gold medallist in the 1997 Athens Olympics but left fans worried after posting a video on social media.
The clip shows Jones struggling to walk down a flight of stairs as she can be heard saying: “They [knees] are hanging on by a thread, fam … but we’re still standing.”
She wrote a caption on top of the post, adding: “It’s always “Are you Marion Jones?! You were the fastest woman in the world once!” And never “how are your knees doing?”
Jones is seen holding onto the banisters of the stairs while taking one step at a time.
She has 140,000 followers on Instagram and regularly posts motivational content in the wake of her illness.
Her Instagram bio reads: “Marion’s Knees today: feelin strong fam.
Still Running, Still Rising, Still Relentless. Mom, Coach & Former Olympian.”
Jones has battled on despite her crippling symptoms and competed in the Chicago Marathon in October.
She recently spoke about her fight to make it to the major after regular trips to the hospital.
She told Fox32 Chicago last month: “I receive, I currently receive infusions every other week.
“So every other week, I’m in a hospital receiving infusions to, to keep things at bay and to keep me healthy and getting stronger.
“You know, just a couple of years ago, I couldn’t walk. So to be there, to be representing, you know, people who are in this space, in this rare community who, you know, still cannot walk, who are in wheelchairs – that was a win for me.
“So I just wanted to finish the race healthy, uninjured, and I did that. And so for Chicago, I want to show off. I want to give it my all.”
This article originally appeared on The Sun and was reproduced with permission.
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