The world of athletics is mourning the death of Ugandan Olympian Rebecca Cheptegei, who succumbed to her injuries in a Kenyan hospital after her partner doused her in petrol.
The 33-year-old long distance runner, who competed in the women's marathon at this year's Paris Olympics, was left with burns across 80 per cent of her body and succumbed to multiple organ failure following Sunday's attack.
Trans Nzoia County Police said that Cheptegei's partner, Dickson Ndiema, bought a can of gasoline, poured it on her and set her ablaze during a disagreement Sunday.
Ndiema was also burned and was being treated at the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Eldoret, where Cheptegei was admitted. The hospital said he was still in the intensive care unit with burns over 30 percent of his body.
The attack is believed to have been caused by a dispute over a plot of land Cheptegei had bought in Trans Nzoia County, an area she chose for its renowned athletic training centers.
Her parents said their daughter had hoped to settle there to pursue her dreams as a top-tier athlete.
A family friend said: "She was so full of life, so determined. She believed this place would help her reach the heights she dreamed of. And now … she's gone."
The Ugandan Athletics Federation posted on X: "We are deeply saddened to announce the passing of our athlete, Rebecca Cheptegei early this morning who tragically fell victim to domestic violence."
Uganda Olympic Committee President Donald Rukare called the attack "a cowardly and senseless act that has led to the loss of a great athlete."
Born and raised in Cheminy, Uganda, Cheptegei had been training in Trans Nzoia West in Kenya for some years.
Her parents said she had bought land in the area to be near the county's many athletic training centers.
A report filed by the local chief said the two were heard fighting over the land where her house was built before the attack.
Cheptegei won the 2022 Padova Marathon and finished fourth in the Abu Dhabi Marathon that same year.
She also represented Uganda in the 2011 and 2013 World Cross Championships in Punta Umbria and Bydgoszcz.
Cheptegei is not the first athlete to have suffered such a tragic fate.
In 2023, Ugandan Olympic runner and steeplechaser Benjamin Kiplagat was found dead with stab wounds. And in 2022, Kenyan-born Bahraini athlete Damaris Muthee was found dead and a postmortem report stated that she was strangled.
In 2021, long distance runner Agnes Tirop was stabbed to death at her home. Her husband, Ibrahim Rotich, was arrested and charged with murder, the case is ongoing.
The investigation into Cheptegei's death is ongoing.
This article includes reporting from The Associated Press
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