DPA
Nairobi
Ugandan Olympic marathon runner Rebecca Cheptegei has died of injuries sustained after being set on fire by her boyfriend in Kenya, the Ugandan athletics federation said on Thursday.
"We are deeply saddened to announce the passing of our athlete, Rebecca Cheptegei early this morning who tragically fell victim to domestic violence,” a statement on X said.
"As a federation, we condemn such acts and call for justice. May her soul rest In Peace.”
Kenyan police said that her Kenyan partner doused her with petrol and then set her on fire on Sunday, allegedly after a dispute. He is being investigated on suspicion of attempted murder.
Neighbours extinguished the fire and brought the two to hospital in the city of Eldoret, where doctors were unable to save her life.
Organs fail due to injuries The hospital said she died in the early hours of Thursday, with doctor Kimani Mbugua saying "we did everything we were capable of” to save her life. She died because most organs had failed because of the injuries.
The clinic had previously said that Cheptegei suffered burns on 80% of her body and also inhaled flames. The partner suffered 30% burns.
Cheptegei, 33, finished 44th at last month’s Olympic marathon in Paris. In 2021, she won the inaugural World Mountain and Trail Running Championship.
Father critical of police Her father, Joseph Cheptegei, spoke of "a terrible death” and hit out at police for not protecting her against her boyfriend she felt threatened by.
"We contacted the police and the security authorities, but they didn’t react quickly enough to save our daughter. If they had acted quickly enough, my daughter would still be alive,” he said.
Cowardly and senseless act Ugandan Olympic Committee president Donald Rukare said on X: "We have learnt of the sad passing on of our Olympic athlete Rebecca Cheptegei following a vicious attack by her boyfriend.
"May her gentle soul rest in peace and we strongly condemn violence against women. This was a cowardly and senseless act that has led to the loss of a great athlete.”
Kenya has been rocked by several cases of femicides over the past months. At the beginning of the year, thousands of people across the country demonstrated against gender-based violence.