Meet Eddie “The Eagle” Edwards, Britain’s most unlikely Olympian, who defied the odds, changed Olympic rules forever, and became a global icon despite finishing last.

“I was sitting at the top of the jump. So many thoughts were going through my head, and there are a million reasons why I shouldn’t go down.”

It’s a feeling Eddie knows all too well, not just on the ski jump, but in life. For years, he stood alone at the edge of his dreams, staring down his fears, doubts, and ridicule. Yet, time and time again, he leapt.

At 61, 37 years after becoming a household name, Eddie the Eagle reflects on his jump to stardom on a Zoom call from his home in Cheltenham. 

Eddie Edwards’ journey to Olympic fame began with a leap of faith, not on the ski jump, but onto a flight to New York. At 20, with nothing more than a dream, he boarded a plane, determined to become a professional skier. “I didn’t realise then, but I was so brave.” He reflects. 

However, Eddie’s time in the US couldn’t have had a worse start. He missed the last bus of the night, leaving him nowhere to go. Eddie had no choice but to stay the night in the Port Authority Bus Terminal. “There were drug addicts all around me. It was really scary”. Paralysed by fear, Eddie stayed awake before jumping on the first bus to Lake Placid. Little did he know, as he stepped off the bus, that his life would change forever.

Whilst in Lake Placid, Eddie became infatuated with the ski jump. Not the person to back down from a challenge. He entered the ski office at the bottom of the jump and asked, “Can I have a go?” The worker replied reluctantly, “Yes,” and pointed him toward the lost property shed. Eddie pulled out boots four sizes too big and stuffed them with socks to make them fit. With no one watching, no coach, and no experience, Eddie took his first steps onto the 10-meter jump.

His jump was no further than six inches. Barely enough to feel the breeze through his tache. But it was a start. After an hour, he moved up to the 15-meter. The thrill grew with each attempt. “It went great”, smiles Eddie, “I had so much determination to make something of it.”

Then came the 40-meter jump, a daunting leap. “The reality of the height only hit me when I got to the top. Eddie laughs. “It was the scariest jump I’d done to that point. I never looked back from there.”

After progressing quickly, Eddie set his sights on the biggest stage: The Olympics. In a letter to the British Ski Federation, he wrote, “I’m ski jumping in Lake Placid. What must I do to qualify for the Calgary Winter Olympics?” Their requirement was simple. Jump 50 meters. And so, with his trademark determination, he achieved it in his next attempt.

He thought he was on his way to the Olympics. The federation had other ideas. They extended the distance to 55 metres, and Eddie again achieved the requirement. Yet again, the goalposts shifted.

Eddie kept jumping and defying the odds. It wasn’t until Eddie moved to Switzerland, five weeks before the Olympics, to continue training, that he found out the news he thought would never come. He was in. “I was absolutely over the moon”, beamed Eddie. 

Without hesitation, Eddie flew back to London to pick up his Olympic uniform, and off he went to Calgary with just two years of experience.

Calgary was swept up in Olympic fanfare. “The crowds were wonderful. There was a real buzz,” Smiles, Eddie. “It was a lovely atmosphere.” Arriving at the Olympic stadium for the opening ceremony, the realisation of his dream was becoming a reality.

“I stared at the Olympic flame for an hour and then realised the stadium was empty. Everybody had gone home,” he chuckles. There was little time to take in the Olympic atmosphere; the next morning, he was to compete.

Arriving in the locker room, Eddie was hit with a warm welcome from his competitors. “They thought I was brilliant. All this attention on me was also thrust upon ski jumping. So, they loved it!”

In just a few days, Eddie transitioned from an unknown competitor overlooked by the media to being graced as Eddie the Eagle, the ultimate underdog. “It’s fun being an underdog. There was no pressure,” grins Eddie. “The only competition was with myself.”

However, the euphoria ended abruptly as the preparation for his jump did not go as planned. “I had a problem with my skis and my bindings” his grin fades. Out of the three practice jumps allowed, Eddie got one. The lack of preparation opened the floodgates for an emotion that was not common to Eddie. Self-doubt. “I didn’t want to fall over and hurt myself, not in front of the 82,000 people in the stadium”.

Eddie! Eddie! Eddie! Cheered the crowd. A smile beamed across Eddie’s face as he waved to 82,000 spectators. “That gave me the lift and confidence to go for it.” Eddie shuffled onto the slope, donning his oversized round glasses, a snug blue ski suit, hot pink goggles perched on his forehead, and that iconic ginger moustache. He was ready to leap into history.

Rubbing his tongue on his top lip, Eddie tapped his ski in anticipation. “You never get used to it. But it’s important to be scared because when you’re nervous, you focus. It makes you concentrate.” As the crowd exploded into one last roar, Eddie pushed himself off the bench, leaned forward, and swung his arms back. Eddie descended the 70m jump at nearly 60 mph and flew into the air. The eagle had taken flight. But could he land?

“I didn’t want to make a complete idiot of myself by falling. But at the same time, I wanted to jump as far as possible,” reflects Eddie. His arms flapped as he approached the ground, and his body embraced the impact. 

Both skis touched back down and began to slide through the snow. He’d landed and broken the British record. Jumping 57 metres.

He unclipped his skis and lifted them above his head to the crowd’s embrace. “Even though it happened thirty-seven years ago, I remember it like yesterday.” Shaking his head in disbelief, he says, “It still makes the hairs on my neck stand.”

He was treated like he had won the Gold medal. In reality, he finished 55th. In other words, last. That didn’t matter. He was now the people’s champion, exemplifying the true meaning of the Olympics. “Being at Calgary was my gold medal.”

His name was now known worldwide as the man who embodied the true underdog spirit. It wasn’t until Eddie landed at Heathrow that he understood his life had changed forever. “There must have been 15,000 people there, shouting and screaming”. Laughs Eddie. “My feet didn’t touch the ground. I travelled worldwide, opening shopping centres, hotels, and golf courses; it was brilliant.”

Despite riding a wave of popularity, the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics would be Eddie’s first and last Games. In 1990, the International Olympic Committee introduced stricter qualifying rules, unofficially dubbed the “Eddie the Eagle Rule”, making it harder for amateur athletes to compete. “They’d clipped my wings”, sighs Eddie. Thirty-seven years later, Eddie “The Eagle” Edwards is still the last ski jumper to represent Great Britain.

He now travels the country as a motivational speaker, reminding everyone that they, too, can achieve anything. 

One small jump for Eddie was a giant leap for those who dared to dream.