The LA Times columnist and former “Around the Horn” panelist wrote about finding pride in his struggle and how taking wrestling classes benefits him.
WASHINGTON — Longtime Los Angeles Times sports columnist and ESPN “Around the Horn” panelist Bill Plaschke has revealed he has Parkinson’s disease.
“I’ve got Parkinson’s, and it hurts to even say it. I’m still mobile, still active, I don’t have the trademark tremors that distinguish the famously afflicted Michael J. Fox or the late Muhammad Ali but, damn it, I’ve got it,” Plaschke wrote in a Los Angeles Times column on Sunday.
Plaschke, known for his coverage of the Lakers and Dodgers, was a fixture on ESPN’s “Around the Horn” for two decades. After the show aired its final episode last month, Plaschke shared his story publicly after keeping his diagnosis private for the past four years.
Plaschke said he was first diagnosed after experiencing weakness in his right arm, a symptom he says has since faded, although he moves a lot slower now.
“Every day it feels like I’ve just run a marathon,” he wrote. “I move well, my balance is fine, but I’m always tight, always creaking.”
“Until now, my condition has only been known to my family. Not even my bosses knew,” Plaschke said. “Yeah, I was embarrassed. I felt humiliated in a way that made no sense and total sense.”
But now, he said he feels a deeper sense of pride and wants to share it with the world. His turning point came after he began boxing in a Parkinson’s-focused program at Kaizen Martial Arts & Fitness in Monrovia, California. In the column, Plaschke explained how his experience has helped him find strength and community among others fighting the same battle.
“I’m proud to be one of them,” he wrote. “And the purpose of this column is to reflect that pride and perhaps make it easier for other folks afflicted with Parkinson’s to come out swinging.”
Roughly 1 million Americans live with Parkinson’s disease, a progressive neurodegenerative disorder that affects movement, speech, and motor skills. There is no cure, but consistent exercise, like the boxing Plaschke participates in, is often cited as one of the best ways to slow progression.
“Maybe this story will shed some light on that. Maybe this story will inform a closeted Parkinson’s patient about programs like Kaizen Kinetics and empower them to pick up the phone and join,” Plaschke wrote.
Plaschke says that despite the daily pain, he is determined to keep writing and living. “I leave that gym sweaty and sore but uplifted with the reminder that I am blessed to still lead a wonderful active life filled with family and friends and work and travel and so, so much hope.”
