Olympic marathon star Rebecca Cheptegei dies days after suffering 80% burns when she was ‘doused in petrol and set alight by her ex-boyfriend during an argument about her country’

Ugandan marathon runner Rebecca Cheptegei has died from horrific injuries after she was doused with petrol and set on fire in her home.

Cheptegei, 33, suffered burns to 80 percent of her body in Sunday’s brutal attack, believed to have been carried out by her ex-boyfriend, medical officials said.

She was rushed to the intensive care unit of the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Eldoret, Kenya, in the hope that doctors could stabilise her.

But the institution’s acting director, Dr Owen Menach, confirmed this morning that Cheptegei died late last night.

“Unfortunately, we lost her after all her organs failed,” Menach told Kenyan press.

Uganda Olympic Committee (UOC) President Donald Rukare wrote in a message on X today: ‘We have learned of the sad passing of our Olympic athlete Rebecca Cheptegei… after a violent attack by her boyfriend.

“This was a cowardly and senseless act that resulted in the loss of a great athlete. Her legacy will live on,” he added.

A UOC press release signed by Rukare later called on law enforcement agencies to “take swift and decisive action to bring the perpetrator to justice.”

Ugandan Olympian Rebecca Cheptegei (center) has died in hospital, it has been announced

Cheptegei, 33, suffered burns over 80 percent of her body in Sunday’s brutal attack, which was allegedly carried out by her ex-boyfriend, medical officials said

Cheptegei won the 2022 World Mountain and Trail Running Championships in Thailand

The horrific incident took place just weeks after Cheptegei competed in the marathon at the Paris Olympics, where she finished 44th.

Kenyan police confirmed that the runner was attacked at her home in the western Trans Nzoia County, near the Ugandan border, where she had recently moved to be closer to Kenya’s better training facilities.

Trans Nzoia County police chief Jeremiah Ole Kosiom said her former partner Dickson Ndiema bought a can of petrol, poured it over her and set her alight during a dispute on Sunday.

According to Kenyan newspaper The Nation, police found a five-liter jerry can, a bag and a burnt phone at the scene of the incident.

Rebecca’s father Joseph Cheptegei, who spoke from hospital earlier this week with his other daughter Evalyne Chelagat, claimed the two had a dispute over her land in Endebes in Trans-Nzoia shortly before the alleged attack.

“They were just friends and I wonder why he wanted to take my daughter’s things,” Cheptegei Snr said. The Starwhich also shows that his daughter’s two children were fathered by another man living in Uganda.

He further alleged that Cheptegei and Ndiema – who he said have been separated for a long time – are involved in a case being investigated by the Directorate of Criminal Investigation (DCI) in Kenya.

According to Cheptegei Snr and Police Chief Kosiom, the ex-boyfriend sneaked into his daughter’s house to stage the attack.

“It is believed the friend sneaked into the compound around 2pm on Sunday while his wife and children were in church,” Kosiom said, according to Kenyan newspaper The Standard.

When he returned, Dickson, who had fetched gasoline, began pouring gasoline over Rebecca before setting her on fire.

‘The couple were heard arguing outside their home. During the altercation, the boyfriend was seen pouring a liquid on the woman before burning her.

‘The suspect was also caught in the fire and suffered serious burns.’

According to Menach, the alleged ex-boyfriend who attacked him was also admitted to the same hospital with 30 percent burns.

(From left) Kenya’s Rosemary Wanjiru, Israel’s Lonah Chemtai Salpeter, Uganda’s Rebecca Cheptegei and Kenya’s Selly Chepyego Kaptich compete in the women’s marathon final during the World Athletics Championships in Budapest on August 26, 2023.

Cheptegei, pictured, finished 44th in the women’s marathon at the 2024 Paris Olympics

Meanwhile, Kenyan media reported that one of Cheptegei’s daughters witnessed the attack at her mother’s house.

“He kicked me while I was trying to save my mother,” Kenyan newspaper The Standard reported.

“I immediately called for help and approached a neighbor who tried to extinguish the flames with water, but he couldn’t,” said the girl, whose name has been withheld.

The Uganda Athletics Federation also reported Cheptegei’s death and paid tribute to their athlete in a statement on X.

“We are deeply saddened to announce the passing of our athlete Rebecca Cheptegei. She passed away early this morning and was tragically a victim of domestic violence,” the magazine said.

“As a federation, we condemn such acts and call for justice. May her soul rest in peace.”

The deadly attack in Cheptegei came two years after Kenyan-born athlete Damaris Mutua was found dead in Iten, a world-famous running centre in the Rift Valley.

And in 2021, 25-year-old Kenyan record holder Agnes Tirop was found dead in her home in Iten.

Her estranged husband is on trial for her murder and denies the charges.

Latest figures from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics, released in January 2023, show that 34 percent of women in the country have experienced physical violence since the age of 15.