William Lindesay

William Lindesay (born 8 May 1956) is an English author, runner, and conservationist. He is best known for his work in protecting and conserving the Great Wall of China. He first went to China to run on the Great Wall in 1986, making the first documented traverse of the ruins on foot the following year, in 1987, in which he covered 2,470 km. He is a current honorary senior research fellow at University of Liverpool, and received the Royal Society for Asian Affairs’ Special Award in 2016.

Credited with awakening China's national consciousness to protect the Great Wall and its environment, Lindesay was the first person to discover an unmapped section of the Great Wall in the Gobi Desert, and has served as an official ambassador for Great Wall conservation since 1998 when he received the Friendship Award from the People's Republic of China.

A member of the Loughry Branch of Clan Lindsay, Lindesay is a descendant of Robert Lindesay of Loughry, a former High Sheriff of Tyrone. Provided by Wikipedia