Eddie The Eagle says he ate from bins before Olympics
He also said he slept in his car in -25C temperatures
The ski-jumper had only been involved in the sport for 22 months, practicing at Gloucester Ski Centre's dry slopes ahead of the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics
(Image: SWNS)
Eddie The Eagle has shared how he was a "charity case" before the Olympics - eating from bins and sleeping in his car. The ski-jumper had only been involved in the sport for 22 months, practicing at Gloucester Ski Centre's dry slopes ahead of the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics.
He described himself as a "charity case," preparing for Lake Placid's 1980 Olympics by shovelling snow in exchange for free training on the slopes - using equipment from lost property. "I was scraping food out of bins," Edwards told the BBC's Sport's Greatest Underdogs podcast.
"The more I could ski jump, the better I could get and, even if I had $100 left, I wanted to make that $100 last. I thought 'if I just buy bread and milk and scrape food out of bins and sleep in the car, I can stay out here for three months'."
Eddie - born Michael Edwards - from Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, says he even slept in his car in -25C weather. Taking advice from his father, a builder, Eddie would befriend chefs and hotel kitchen workers in the hopes of getting a free meal.
Eddie "The Eagle" has shared how he was a "charity case" before the Olympics
(Image: SWNS)
"I asked hotels if they needed any work doing... I met two brothers and they let me cut their grass and gave me a free meal," Eddie revealed on the podcast.
"One of the brothers was a chef. If I was passing the hotel and he saw me, he'd open the window and lob me a tin of beans or pears. I'd think 'oh great, that's my meal for tonight'.
"The British Scout groups where I was staying would give me their spare food before they went home. They were lovely.
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Former British ski jumper, Eddie 'The Eagle' Edwards
(Image: SWNS)
"For the other jumpers at the time, they stayed in five-star hotels. They had the doctors, psychologists, and there was just me on my own.
"I was like a charity case really. It was tough - but I had so much fun."
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