BLIND marathon runner from Poole, Don Planner, has died at the age of 69.

Born on the Isle of Sheppey, Kent, Don enlisted in the Royal Mechanical and Electrical Engineers in 1963 and trained to become a vehicle fitter. He was army cycling champion in 1966, and continued to represent the army racing against other NATO countries.

After qualifying as a fitter he married his wife of 50 years, Sharon, and their first son Stuart was born in 1967. Don's tours of duty included Gibraltar, Kenya, and then he was posted to Osnabruck in West Germany shortly after the birth of their second son Daniel in 1971.

"Two years later Don was posted to West Berlin to accompany the Coldstream Guards and following their departure he stayed on in Berlin, being assigned to the Royal Green Jackets. Within a few months Don was involved in an explosion which gave him major head injuries and resulted in him being blinded. After four and a half months in various hospitals in Berlin the family were sent back to the UK where he was admitted to the Cambridge Military Hospital in Aldershot for further surgery," said his son Stuart.

Don was introduced to the St Dunstan's charity, now the Blind Veterans, where he was prepared for living as a blind person. Once discharged from the army the family moved back to Kent to be nearer family support.

"He struggled with life and not getting a job but rather than getting depressed Don began to get fit and with the help of a PE teacher, took up various field sports such as the discus, javelin and shot put. He quickly excelled and became National Champion in two of these at the National Disabled Games at Stoke Mandeville and retained the title for five years."

After his third son Jamie was born in 1977 Don took up archery and became National Champion for blind archers for 1979 and 1980. He also enjoyed his skiing and after taking up the sport seriously in 1976 went every year for the next 16 years.

Don retrained as a telephonist, initially working for the NHS, and then at NatWest Bank in Chatham, Kent, relocating to the NatWest on the George roundabout in Poole in 1987.

"Don, always one to keep active, after a ten mile run in Kent, began to do fund raising marathons and Great South Runs. His tally was 17 marathons in total, including New York. Many of the NatWest staff became his eyes for those marathons,"said Stuart.

After recovering from a heart attack in 1994 Don decided to take up mountaineering and 19 months later was the first blind man to climb the Goutier route up Mont Blanc, for which he won several awards.

Don retired from the NatWest in 1997. He died on October 4 after fighting cancer for four years. A service of thanksgiving was held at Harbour View Crematorium and Woodland Burial Ground on October 13.