Eddie the Eagle rule

proper noun

A rule that prevents a potential competitor from entering the Olympic Games unless they take part in an international event and are placed in the top 30% or the top 50 competitors, whichever is fewer.

Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

proper nounthe Eddie the Eagle rule
  1. A rule that prevents a potential competitor from entering the Olympic Games unless they take part in an international event and are placed in the top 30% or the top 50 competitors, whichever is fewer.

Origin

The rule was introduced after Michael Edwards (born 1963), known as Eddie the Eagle, represented Great Britain in Olympic ski jumping in 1988 and performed notoriously badly.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

Eddie the Eagle rule. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Eddie%20the%20Eagle%20rule

MLA

“Eddie the Eagle rule.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Eddie%20the%20Eagle%20rule. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Eddie the Eagle rule,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Eddie%20the%20Eagle%20rule.

Source: Eddie the Eagle rule on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.