Mountain running legend Charlie Ramsay has died aged 81
A Scottish hero on the hills whose mountain running achievements will go down in history, Charlie Ramsay has passed away at the age of 81.
In 1978, Ramsay became the first person to complete what continues to be regarded as one of the most gruelling foot challenges in the UK: a 58-mile circuit around the Scottish Highlands, involving 24 summits and 28,500ft of elevation. Having covered all of this ground in just 23 hours and 58 minutes, he established this challenge as the Ramsay Round – the only classic British mountain round to be founded by a Black runner.
Since Ramsay first set this record in the late 1970s, countless mountain running enthusiasts from across the world have headed to the rugged wilds of Scotland, near Fort William, to embark on the Ramsay Round, with many hoping to complete the endeavour within 24 hours. While Ramsay Round contenders can choose to complete the circuit either clockwise or anticlockwise, they must start and finish at the Glen Nevis Youth Hostel and cover all peaks in the correct order.
Taking the anticlockwise route – which was the original choice – is often considered the hardest option, since it ends with Ben Nevis. With a summit standing at 1,345m above sea level, Ben Nevis is the UK’s tallest peak.
To date, the Ramsay Round has been completed in under 24 hours on 273 occasions, with 136 of these efforts – effectively half – following the trickier anticlockwise circuit. It took nine years for another person to complete the round in a sub-24-hour time after Ramsay’s original success, with Martin Stone accomplishing the task in a slightly quicker time of 23 hours and 24 minutes in 1987.
The fastest known time for the Ramsay Round was set by decorated British Fell runner Finlay Wild in August 2020. Moving anticlockwise, solo and unsupported, Wild conquered the course in a phenomenal time of 14 hours and 42 minutes. Jasmin Paris – who made history when she became the first-ever woman to complete the mythically brutal Barkley Marathons in 2024 – holds the fastest known time on the women’s side, having ticked off the Ramsay Round in an incredible 16 hours and 13 minutes in June 2016. At the time, this was the outright record for both men and women.
Beyond just completing and founding his eponymous round, Ramsay was well-known for imparting advice and motivation to countless other runners who aspired to complete the round for themselves. He was both an idol and a kind, down-to-earth mentor, who encouraged and often met with other Ramsay Round contenders to show his genuine support.
One such person to have been inspired by Ramsay was Sabrina Pace-Humphreys, a trailblazing ultrarunner who has completed the Ramsay Round twice: first in 2021 with Black Trail Runners, a community and campaigning charity that she co-founded, then again in 2024.
‘I – along with the community – am feeling a real sense of loss,’ said Pace-Humphreys to Runner’s World UK, reflecting on Ramsay’s passing. ‘His story is one that must continue to be told and his legacy must be preserved and act as a source of inspiration to those of us who love the mountains and adventure – via running – in them.
‘He was the most amazing, passionate and helpful man,’ she continued. ‘Always there to offer advice and support to anyone seeking to pick off any number of sections of the round.’
A man who loved and helped to popularise mountain running for almost half a century, Ramsay will continue to bear a positive impact on the sport for many generations to come – in the Scottish Munros and beyond.
His funeral will take place at Mortonhall Crematorium, in Edinburgh, on Thursday 6 March.
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