Outrage and sorrow at death of Ugandan athlete Rebecca Cheptegei

Nairobi: Outrage and sorrow greeted the death on Thursday of Ugandan Olympian Rebecca Cheptegei, who succumbed to severe burns after being doused with petrol and set on fire by her boyfriend at her home in Kenya.

It was the latest horrific act of gender-based violence in the East African country, where activists have warned of a rising femicide epidemic.

The 33-year-old long distance runner died around 5:30am (0230 GMT), the doctor treating her at a hospital in Eldoret in western Kenya told reporters.

“Her injuries were extensive and covered most parts of her body. It led to multiple organ failure,” said Kimani Mbugua, head of the intensive care unit at the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital.

“We tried our best but we did not succeed. Looking at her age and the over 80-percent burns she suffered, the hope of recovery was slim.”

Police say the attack was carried out on Sunday by Cheptegei’s Kenyan partner, Dickson Ndiema Marangach.

It took place just weeks after Cheptegei made her Olympic debut in the women’s marathon at the Paris Games, where she finished 44th.

Marangach snuck into her home in Endebess near the border with Uganda while she was at church with her two young daughters, police said.

He also received severe burns in the incident, with a doctor saying he was in a stable condition but still in intensive care.

Kenyan media said Cheptegei’s children, aged nine and 11, had witnessed the attack.

‘Violent murder’

The attack, which the United Nations called a “violent murder”, triggered widespread condemnation.

“The news of our daughter Rebecca Cheptegei’s tragic death due to domestic violence is deeply disturbing,” Janet Museveni, Uganda’s First Lady and Education Minister, posted on X.

Kenyan Sports Minister Kipchumba Murkomen said it was a “stark reminder” that more must be done to combat gender-based violence.

The Paris Olympics organisers voiced their “profound indignation and sadness”.

Kenya’s National Olympic Committee said: “Rebecca’s talent and perseverance as Uganda’s Women’s Marathon record holder and a Paris 2024 Olympian will always be remembered and celebrated.”

Her father, Joseph Cheptegei, told reporters the dispute with Marangach had been over the property where she lived with her sister and daughters.

He told Kenyan media earlier this week that Marangach had bought five litres of petrol then hid out in a chicken coop before the attack.

“He poured the petrol and lit her on fire. When she called her sister to help, he threatened her with a machete and she ran away.”

The police said the couple had “constantly had family wrangles”.

‘I cried for help’

One of Cheptegei’s daughters told Kenya’s The Standard newspaper that Marangach “kicked me while I tried to run to the rescue of my mother.”

“I immediately cried out for help, attracting a neighbour who tried to extinguish the flames with water, but it was not possible.”

Violence against women is widespread in Kenya, which saw 725 femicide cases in 2022 alone, according to the latest UN figures.

A 2023 report by Kenya’s National Bureau of Statistics found 34 per cent of women had experienced physical violence since the age of 15.

In October 2021, record-breaking Kenyan runner Agnes Tirop, 25, was found stabbed to death at her home in the renowned Rift Valley running hub of Iten.

Her estranged husband, who denies murdering her, is on trial.

In April 2022, Kenyan-born Bahrain athlete Damaris Mutua was also found dead in Iten, in a suspected domestic violence incident.

Joan Chelimo, athlete and cofounder of Tirop’s Angels, a group set up to combat gender-based violence after Tirop’s death, said on Instagram she was “deeply shaken and outraged” by the attack on Cheptegei.

“This senseless violence must end.”