Longsighted

Intro

"Don't be willing to accept an ordinary life" -Salle Merrill Redfied

Being successful at the sport of downhill skiing wasn't enough for Michael "Eddie" Edwards. Even for all of his dedication and effort, Eddie had been rejected by the British Olympic officials for his awkward ways and unnatural form.

After doing research and digging into old records going back to the 1920's, he realizes he had a chance to make the team as a ski jumper (a sport in which the United Kingdom had not participated in six decades).

Much to his parent's dismay, after meeting with British Olympic Official, Steven Richmond, he makes off to train in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. The more seasoned jumpers he meets there, specifically those on the Norwegian team, belittle him daily.

Not only having very little skill in the dangerous sport of ski-jumping, Eddie had a terrific condition of hyperopia (long sightedness). This required him to wear his eyeglasses at all times, which during ski jumps fogged to such an extent that he could not see.

After yet another unlucky day attempting a successful 40-meter jump, Eddie ends up breaking his only pair of glasses. This forces him to reluctantly make an appointment in the ophthalmic clinic in Garmisch.