Gavin Bland (born 21 November 1971Steve Chilton, "Gavin Bland in Profile (Part 1)", ''The Fellrunner'', Spring 2021, 45-48.
/ref>) is a British fell runner who was a British and English champion and represented his country at the World Mountain Running Trophy.

Biography

Gavin Bland was born in 1971 in

Penrith, Cumbria Penrith (, ) is a market town and civil parish in the Westmorland and Furness district of Cumbria, England. It is less than outside the Lake District, Lake District National Park and about south of Carlisle. It is between the Rivers River Pet ...

, and grew up on his family's farm in

Borrowdale Borrowdale is a valley and civil parish in the English Lake District in Cumberland (unitary authority), Cumberland, England. It is in the ceremonial county of Cumbria, and is sometimes referred to as ''Cumberland Borrowdale'' to distinguis ...

. The prominent fell runner Billy Bland is his uncle, and several other members of his family were active in the sport. He attended

Keswick School Keswick School is a coeducational 11–18 academy in Cumbria, United Kingdom rated 'Outstanding' by Ofsted in 2024 with 1200 pupils on roll. There are 260 students in the sixth form and 40 boarders. The school is the successor of th ...

, leaving aged sixteen to work on the family farm. Bland was successful in races as a youth. His first senior race was in 1989. Perhaps the most notable performance in the early part of his running career was a second place in the junior race at the World Mountain Running Trophy in

1990 Important events of 1990 include the Reunification of Germany and the unification of Yemen, the formal beginning of the Human Genome Project (finished in 2003), the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope, the separation of Namibia from South ...

. He also represented England in senior races at the World Mountain Running Trophy in

1991 It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...

and

1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...

. In 1991, Bland won the English Fell Running Championships and was second to Keith Anderson in the British Championships. In 1999, he won both the British and English Championships. This was despite being a self-acknowledged "lazy trainer", though his work as a

shepherd A shepherd is a person who tends, herds, feeds, or guards flocks of sheep. Shepherding is one of the world's oldest occupations; it exists in many parts of the globe, and it is an important part of Pastoralism, pastoralist animal husbandry. ...

meant that he spent a lot of time on the fells in addition to his specific training. Throughout the 1990s, Bland was particularly successful at the most prestigious or "classic" long fell races. His wins included the Ben Nevis Race,

, the Ennerdale Horseshoe, the Peris Horseshoe, the Three Peaks, Wasdale, the Welsh 1000m Peaks, the Edale Skyline, Duddon Valley,

Holme Moss Holme Moss ( Above mean sea level, a.s.l.) is high moorland on the border between the Holme Valley district of Kirklees in West Yorkshire and the High Peak, Derbyshire, High Peak district of Derbyshire in England. Historically on the boundary ...

, the Three Shires and the Langdale Horseshoe. After the interruption of fell running by the 2001 foot-and-mouth outbreak, Bland featured less prominently in races but had occasional returns to good form, winning counters in the English or British Championships series at Langdale in 2003 and Silent Valley in 2013. He still holds the race records for the Three Shires, Peris Horseshoe and the Carnethy 5.Carnethy 5 Hill Race.
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bland, Gavin English male long-distance runners British male long-distance runners British fell runners Living people 1971 births British male mountain runners