Ugandan runner Cheptegei dies after attack by boyfriend, national Olympic committee says

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Ugandan runner Cheptegei dies after attack by boyfriend, national Olympic committee says

9:27 CAT | 05 Sep 2024

FILE - Athletics - World Athletics Championship - Women's Marathon - National Athletics Centre, Budapest, Hungary - August 26, 2023 Israel's Lonah Chemtai Salpeter, Kenya's Rosemary Wanjiru, Peru's Zaida Ramos, Uganda's Mercyline Chelangat, Rebecca Cheptegei, and Doreen Chesang in action during the women's marathon final [File photo: Reuters/DylanMartinez]

-Ugandan Olympic marathon runner Rebecca Cheptegei has died, the head of the country’s Olympics committee said on Thursday, days after she was doused in petrol and set on fire by her boyfriend.

Kenyan and Ugandan media reported that Cheptegei, 33, who competed in the Paris Olympics, suffered burns to more than 75% of her body in the attack in Kenya on Sunday, making her the third female athlete to be killed in the country since October 2021.

“We have learnt of the sad passing on of our Olympic athlete Rebecca Cheptegei … following a vicious attack by her boyfriend,” Donald Rukare, president of Uganda Olympics Committee, said in a post on X.

“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. Her legacy will continue to endure.”

Cheptegei, who finished 44th in Paris, had a house in Kenya where she stayed when she trained in the country.

Source: Reuters