Ugandan athlete Rebecca Cheptegei dies after petrol attack

Ugandan athlete Rebecca Cheptegei. [File, Standard]

Ugandan long-distance runner Rebecca Cheptegei has died at the age of 33.

Cheptegei, who competed in the women's marathon at the 2024 Paris Olympics, was set on fire at her home in Trans Nzoia on Sunday.

According to Owen Menach, Director of Clinical Services at Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH), Cheptegei succumbed to multiple organ failure after suffering 80 percent burns from the attack. She was admitted to MTRH's Intensive Care Unit (ICU) on Monday, following the incident.

Police reported that Dickson Ndiema, a male friend of Cheptegei who also sustained severe burns, allegedly doused her in petrol before igniting the fire.

Ndiema is currently in the ICU with 30 percent burns, as confirmed by doctors at MTRH.

The attack is believed to be related to an ongoing land dispute in Kinyoro, Trans Nzoia West, where Cheptegei lived. Her father, Joseph Cheptegei, has called for a thorough investigation into the incident.

Born and raised in Cheminy, Uganda, Cheptegei had been training in Trans Nzoia West. To reduce living costs while training in Kenya, she purchased land and built a house in Kinyoro.

Cheptegei was the 2022 Padova Marathon winner 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.

She was transferred to MTRH from Kitale County Referral Hospital on Monday, the day after the attack.