I have never, ever considered myself a failure.
I'm a positive person who likes to have fun and get the best out of every day.
On the street, I'll hear, 'You made the Olympics for me,' or 'I love what you represented.' Only occasionally is it, 'You were a flop, an also-ran, a loser.'
When I started competing, I was so broke that I had to tie my helmet with a piece of string. On one jump, the string snapped, and my helmet carried on farther than I did. I may have been the first ski jumper ever beaten by his gear.
I was a true amateur and embodied what the Olympic spirit is all about. To me, competing was all that mattered.
I want my life to move on. On the other hand, I can't say no to offers, not when I'm getting £50,000 a year to be Eddie the Eagle.
I did a tandem parachute jump when I opened a golf course in Atlanta, Georgia. I jumped out of a plane at 15,000 feet to land on the first tee, and then I played a couple of holes with golfer Arnold Palmer. That was brilliant.
Americans are very much 'Win! Win! Win!' In England, we don't give a fig whether you win. It's great if you do, but we appreciate those who don't.
I would never think of asking a girl out on the High Street or the disco or at school. But on the ski slope, I would chat to all the girls.
Most people should be given a chance to compete in the Olympic Games.
I don't want to look like Michael Jackson.
Some people thought I was bringing the sport down. I don't think so. I was the best and only jumper my country had.
I actually had huge problems with my glasses steaming up all the time. I had to train very carefully around the limitations caused by wearing them.
If you are in your sport for your country, you should be able to go to the Olympic Games and represent your sport for your country bringing people together in the interests of sport. It's a fantastic Olympic ideal, and I uphold it as much as I can.
I travelled the world because of the way people saw me at the Olympics.
I was exemplifying the Olympian who took up a challenge as a sportsman, without a trainer, in a country without mountains and without snow. And, inside of two years, I was representing my country.
I want to be recognised as exemplifying the Olympic spirit - one of the last true Olympians.
I broke my jaw jumping, and I broke my back and my neck in the downhill. This is normal for me.
I can't explain my popularity. I suppose I'm just an ordinary bloke, and a lot of people see a little bit of Eddie in themselves.
There are so many world-class athletes who are great at their sport, but they're so boring. They don't talk, and they can't be interviewed very well.
