Madawaska’s Andy Palmer, a former world-class runner who was the founder and director of the Maine Running Camp in Bar Harbor, collapsed and died near his home in North Carolina on Sunday. He was 48.

His death apparently occurred after he had finished a long run according to 1984 Olympic women’s marathon gold medalist Joan Benoit Samuelson.

“He had stopped his watch after two hours and 10 minutes. That’s all we know at this point,” said Benoit-Samuelson who, like other Palmer friends and members of the running community, was devastated by the news.

“He meant a great deal to me. He had been a dear friend for many years,” said Benoit Samuelson. “He would give the shirt off his back to anybody. He had a great rapport with runners of all ages and abilities.”

Palmer and wife Zika were about to open their ZAP Fitness Center in Blowing Rock, N.C.

The ZAP stands for Zika-Andy Palmer and the center will be for runners of all ages and levels, including elite runners.

Other endurance sports will also be offered.

“You always love to see people live out their dreams and this was his dream for many years. Everything had come together very nicely,” said Benoit Samuelson.

“To have this happen to Andy is hard to believe. It’s shocking,” added Benoit Samuelson.

Long-time runner and journalist Ed Rice called Palmer “a great ambassador for running.

“He took running to its highest peak,” Rice added. “Recreational runners were just as important to him as elite runners. He was a fierce competitor but when he wasn’t racing, he was the friendliest of people.”

Palmer directed the Maine Running Camp for over 20 years and Rice said Palmer “had the ability to make running fun.”

Dr. Peter Millard, another close friends, talked about Palmer’s passion for running.

“His whole life was running,” added Millard. “He was a fitness guru. In a way, he was a holdover from the ’70s in the era of Frank Shorter and Bill Rodgers. There were a whole bunch of running junkies. That’s what they lived for.”

Millard called Palmer a “very humble person who was really considerate of other people. He ran a 2:16 marathon which was a world class time. But he never bragged about it.”

Owen Logue, another long-time Palmer friend, said the state of Maine lost “one of the great giants in track and field and cross country.

“He was a fabulous mentor and a real source of inspiration [in the running community],” said Logue. “He raised the bar in Maine running.”

Palmer compiled an impressive resume that earned him a spot in the Maine Running Hall of Fame on Nov. 5, 2000.

In 1979, he was the first Maine finisher in the Boston Marathon.

Two years later, he had the 10th fastest time among American runners at the 10-mile distance at 47:52.

In 1982, Palmer won the Seattle Marathon and, in the fall of 1983, he captured the Bostonfest Marathon through the streets of Boston with a time of 2:16.25.

Palmer, who was also inducted into the University of Maine-Presque Isle Sports Hall of Fame, participated in the Olympic marathon trials in 1984 and ’88.

He set an American record in the 30K run for 29-year-olds in 1984.

In 1986, he was 13th in the trials for the World Marathon Championships.

His personal bests included a 4:13 mile and a 29:04 10K.

Palmer, who played three years of basketball at UMPI and ran cross country his junior and senior years there, was a teacher and coach at various levels including Mars Hill’s Central Aroostook High School and Brandeis University in Waltham, Mass.

He received a master’s degree from the University of Southern Maine and a doctoral degree in sports psychology from Florida State University.

He also worked for Rodgers in Boston and served as a consultant for Reebok and New Balance.

“He lived a life many people would have liked to have lived,” said Benoit Samuelson. “And he gave and gave and gave of his experience and knowledge and his passion for the sport.”