LONDON - Menzies Campbell, 66-year-old leader of Britain's centrist Liberal Democrats and a critic of the Iraq war, has resigned, his party said.
Here are some key facts about Campbell.
* Campbell, a former Olympic sprinter, was elected leader of the Liberal Democrats, Britain's third largestparty, in March 2006 at the age of 64. He was seen as a "safe pair of hands" who could stabilise the party after the resignation of Charles Kennedy, who admitted to an alcohol problem.
* Campbell, known as "Ming", was the party's foreign affairs spokesman before becoming its leader and has consistently opposed the Iraq war.
* Brought up in Glasgow, Campbell competed in the 1964 Olympic and 1966 Commonwealth Games, was captain of the UK athletics team from 1965 to 1966 and held the British 100 metres record for seven years from 1967.
* He studied law at Glasgow University and international law at Stanford University in California before becoming a barrister. He has contested every general election since 1974, becoming member of parliament for North East Fife in Scotland in 1987.
* At the party's annual conference in September 2007, Campbell hit back at constant media sniping about his age and performance, declaring he would lead his party into the next election with "energy, ambition and determination." But younger colleagues were already jockeying for position to succeed him.
