Eddie 'The Eagle' Edwards

[subaqua]

and the IOC changed the rules to stop the " eddie the eagles" being able to compete, which is another reason i hate the fecking olympics

 

[Bobby Mhor]

Pity he wasn't posh.....
that ski jump takes cahunnas....
he upset the 'Establishment' and that was it..

 

[Linford]

He's proper badass, I'd like to meet him. In fact, he'd be first on my list of "people you'd invite to dinner" things.

The teacher he was chatting with on the ski slope at Gloucester (mick miller) comes to my school year reunions as he was also my games teacher. Eddie is a brilliant skier, who was thwarted by the people who should have been looking out for him.
He was in the year above me and was on a school skiing trip to Cerler in the pyrenees which I went on in 78. He was a natural skier and one of the best on the mountain even though he had only started skiing the year before when he would have been 13.

 

[Linford]

Pity he wasn't posh.....
that ski jump takes cahunnas....
he upset the 'Establishment' and that was it..

He grew up in St Pauls in Cheltenham. It is 'inner city' and was a deprived area ..still is but the students have taken over there now with the college so close by. I bought my first house in the next road over from his.

 

[Bobby Mhor]

He grew up in St Pauls in Cheltenham. It is 'inner city' and was a deprived area ..still is but the students have taken over there now with the college so close by. I bought my first house in the next road over from his.

If only the poor fella had been a pupil at public school or had gone to the right Uni....

Today (or was it yesterday) some British female finished 75th out of 84( roughly) in her event but it would be the usual stiff upper lip bools in the mooth commentator guff done by someone who finished 10th in some obscure event many Olympics ago saying something like it was worth her while coming here to compete against the best and and a new personal best for her...if finishing in a lowly position like that is a personal best, its time to wrap it

 

[screenman]

Surely if she has done her best you cannot ask any more, there can only be one winner.

I wish had Olympic competitor on my CV.

 

[Ganymede]

My dear chap. That sort of fellow. Well he doesn't really belong now does he. Not with our winter sports set.

Haven't you seen the "Fridge Kids"?

 

[Linford]

Our school.. Naunton Park Secondary is actually right next to the public school Cheltenham Boys and Gentleman's college. My best mate in schools father was the head groundsman and Cricket coach there. I spent many an evening climbing the trees in the grounds as a kid with my mate and got friendly with a few of the borders there in the days of the CB..they were decent kids who were lucky enough to have had people looking out for them...many were from military families and the state paid for them to go there whilst the parents were abroad. I wouldn't tar them as snobs because opportunity came knocking.

Eddie did well in spite of the odds. He deserved the fame he has and has put it to good use.Can anyone remember the names ofthe people who won the jumping at Calgary in 88 Cos I can't. He now runs his own property development co under his real name of Michael Edwards builders...or summat in Stroud, but that has to be on the back burner with his second wind of fame and rubbish building weather this winter

 

[Bobby Mhor]

And there we have a great summary of all that is horrible and worthless about the Olympics today.

Thanks,.just as an aside the BBC have twice the number of GB competitors in their commentating and related staff in Sochi.

an example of being in the right place, a certain world class tennis player who graced what is a 'council' school albeit in an affluent Scottish town had the right connections or more to the point his mother was well connected....would the big fella have got the breaks? I'd like to think he would....

 

[Pro Tour Punditry]

I wish had Olympic competitor on my CV.

What's stopping you?

 

[screenman]

Was there not an Olympic TT champion recently who grew up on a council estate.

 

[screenman]

What's stopping you?

I think age maybe.

 

[Pro Tour Punditry]

@Marmion & @screenman .... this stalking of each other is getting boring......

I didn't even notice who had posted that comment; I really am not interested in squabbling and don't often "play the man" at all.

I was just asking a question; if someone has an unfulfilled dream then there is nothing to stop them trying to fulfil it if they really want it.

 

[Pro Tour Punditry]

I think age maybe.

OK, now I have been told off for "stalking you" (despite it not registering that I was responding to you) I am not sure if I should continue - but I shall regardless

There is plenty scope to become an Olympian even in later life; you just need to find the right sport. Shooting perhaps? Plenty "oldies" can do that.

 

[Beebo]

Was there not an Olympic TT champion recently who grew up on a council estate.

Yeah but cycling is seen as sport of the ordinary man, skiing isnt.