North-East Athletics was last night mourning the loss of Dr Jim Dewar, the man responsible for creating and organising the Blaydon Race.

The 69-year-old was found dead in an armchair at his home in Heddon-on-the-Wall, Northumberland, on Saturday night, just three days after he had seen the successful completion of the 24th race.

Dewar, who was President of Blaydon Harriers Athletics Club and who grew up in the West End of Newcastle, had a Phd in Chemistry from Newcastle University and worked as a bio-chemist at the medical school at the Royal Victoria Infirmary.

He begun the Blaydon Race in 1981 after the idea of creating a unique North-East event came to him during a training run for the London Marathon.

The keen cyclist and book collector, who joined the Blaydon Harriers in 1978, has organised the event every year as the number of competitors grew from 212 in 1981 to around 4,000 in 2004.

"He was Mr Blaydon Race for so many people," said his friend and chairman of Blaydon Harriers, Bob Houston.

"He was integral in getting the event started and he has organised every one of them since. He lived for the race and he always said that to me.

"When people said it might not be held one year, he just said it had to because it was the thing that kept him going.

"The event is because of him, its unique atmosphere is because of him and it has blossomed because of him.

"It is so popular now that we had to close applications for this year's event two weeks early. We could have had more than 6000 competitors if safety had allowed.

"He was responsible for the race's unique atmosphere and he used it to push the Geordie culture he loved so much. He was very proud of the North-East and he wanted the race to be something the region could be proud of - I think he achieved that.

"He would be the first to admit he was an eccentric and all the strange things in the race, the ham and pease pudding sandwiches and the Geordie phrases used on the signs and in the programme were all his idea. The 25th race will have to go ahead in his memory."

Held on June 9 every year, the name came from Geordie Ridley's Tyneside anthem about the Blaydon Horse races held there until 1916.

And, after coming up with the idea of the race, ironically in the same year as the first ever Great North Run and London Marathon were held, Dewar was determined to ensure it included as many aspects from the famous song as possible.

Only last week he said: "It is a unique race with a unique atmosphere. It is a special part of North-East athletics and that is why so many people, both from the local area and elsewhere, come back year after year.

"From the start it was clear that it should be called The Blaydon Race and that it should attempt to follow the route and should incorporate as much detail from the song as possible. I wanted it to maintain an intense interest in local things, traditions and culture.

"I'd like to think it has contributed to campaigns like the one to bring back the Blaydon Races painting to the North-East."

He leaves a wife, Irene and three grown up children, Simon, Chris and Steve.

* See tomorrow's Journal for full Blaydon Race results pull-out.