Michael “Eddie the Eagle” Edwards became an iconic Olympian in the 1980s and his legacy still has an effect on Olympic athletes to this day.
In 1986, Edwards relocated to Lake Placid, N.Y. -- host of the 1980 Winter Olympics -- to train under American coaches Chuck Berghorn and John Viscome. Edwards faced a trifecta of obstacles -- lack of funding, his weight that put him nine pounds heavier than the next closest competitor, and nearsightedness that forced him to wear glasses, frequently fogging up and impairing his vision.
At the Olympics, Edwards finished last in both the 70m and 90m events, scoring over 50 points less than the next closest competitor. His 71m jump in the latter event set a British record at the time and still sits in sixth place on the all-time list of British ski jumps. To this day, Great Britain has still never won a medal in ski jumping.
Edwards did, however, earn a five-year sponsorship from Eagle Airlines in support of his attempt to qualify for the 1998 Olympics in Nagano. Michael Edwards is now 58 years old and has been keeping busy off the slopes, especially on television. He currently resides in Gloucestershire.
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