This Ugandan Runner Who Competed In This Year’s Paris Olympics Has Died After Being Set On Fire By Her Boyfriend
33-year-old Rebecca Cheptegei, a distance runner who finished 44th in marathon at the Paris Olympics in August, was attacked outside her house in Kenya.
This Ugandan runner who competed in this year’s Paris Olympics has died after being set on fire by her boyfriend.
33-year-old Rebecca Cheptegei, a distance runner who finished 44th in marathon at the Paris Olympics in August, was attacked outside her house in Kenya on Sunday, Sep. 1.
Her boyfriend, Dickson Ndiema, reportedly poured 20 liters of petrol on her, setting her on fire during an argument when she returned from church.
Cheptegei suffered extensive burns over 75% of her body.
She was rescued by neighbors and was taken to the hospital with her boyfriend, who is also being treated for severe burns.
Besides competing in the Paris Olympics, Cheptegei had won gold at the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships in 2022.
This is the latest incident of gender-based violence against women athletes in Kenya.
In 2021, Agnes Tirop, a Kenyan runner who competed in the Tokyo Olympics and placed 4th in the 5000-meter race, was stabbed to death by her husband.
And in 2022, another Kenyan-born Bahraini athlete, Damaris Mutua, was murdered by her boyfriend in the same town as Tirop.
Tirop’s husband is facing murder charges, while Mutua’s boyfriend has still not been found.
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