Bill Johnson, Olympic downhill champ, ends treatment

Former Olympic downhill champion Bill Johnson no longer wants to go through treatment after dealing with a life-threatening infection that has attacked his major organs.

Associated Press photo

Associated Press photo

Hospitalized since June 29, the one-time daredevil skier refuses a feeding tube, even though it hurts to swallow, his mom said in a phone interview Wednesday. He no longer wants supplemental oxygen or even antibiotics that could possibly help him.

He’s tired of being poked with needles, sick of all the tubes attached to him. His mom said that Johnson’s wish is simply to leave the hospital and return to his room at an assisted living facility in Gresham where the 53-year-old was living before the illness.

That way, he can fight this on his terms and in his own way.

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