Eddie jumps into law

Solicitors in Bristol may care to duck - Eddie 'the Legal Eagle' Edwards may be flying to a law firm near you.

Britain's first and only Olympic ski jumper this week graduated with a 2:2 law degree from De Montfort University in Leicester, and has been accepted on to the legal practice course (LPC).

Mr Edwards has decided to take a year out to consider his options, but told the Gazette he was interested in finding a training contract at a Bristol firm to be near his wife - they share a house in Gloucestershire - while taking the LPC.

'The major thing for me taking the LPC is the cost,' he said.

'It's between 5,000 and 8,000, so I would need a training contract.

'I would like to be a lawyer working in employment law, family law or medical law - those are the aspects of the course I enjoyed the most.

I liked working out what was wrong and what was right, employment rights and my rights as a homeowner.'

Most famous for his appearance in the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics, Mr Edwards still teaches skiing and ski jumping.

But he has not yet made his mind up as to his chosen career.

'Becoming a lawyer and working for a law firm, or working for the Crown Prosecution Service, are options for me,' the 39-year-old said.

'I'm also interested in joining the police or setting up my own business - but I am steering more towards the law than anything else.'

Chris Baker