UGANDAN athlete, Rebecca Cheptegei, has been hospitalised after her boyfriend Dickson Ndiema Marangach, allegedly doused her with petrol and set her ablaze.
Rebecca, who has represented Uganda in several international competitions, including the just concluded Olympics, was attacked at her home in Endebess, a small town in western Kenya, where she had been training.
AP reported that the Trans Nzoia county police commander, Jeremiah ole Kosiom, said that Cheptegei’s boyfriend, bought a Jerry can of petrol, poured it on her and set her ablaze during a disagreement Sunday, September 1.
The 33-year-old marathon runner suffered burns to more than 75 per cent of her body.
Cheptegei was said to have been rescued by neighbours following the incident, which occurred on Sunday, September 1, at her home.
The alleged assailant and her partner, was also injured by the flames, according to police.
The two are currently receiving treatment at Moi Referral Hospital in Eldoret, where Cheptegei was admitted to the intensive care unit on Monday.
“The couple were heard quarrelling outside their house. During the altercation, the boyfriend was seen pouring a liquid on the woman before burning her,” Kosiom was quoted as saying.
While the police said investigation was underway, it noted that the athlete and Marangach were a couple who “constantly had family wrangles.
Cheptegei placed 44th in the marathon at the recent Paris Olympics and also secured a gold medal at the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships in Chiang Mai, Thailand, in 2022.
This latest incident was coming about eight months after another Ugandan athlete, Benjamin Kiplagat was stabbed to death by assailants in Kenya in December.
In April 2022, another female runner, Damaris Mutua, was found strangled in her home with a pillow over her face in the Rift Valley town of Iten, Kenya.
This incident occurred a few months after Agnes Tirop, a record-breaking long-distance runner, was found stabbed to death in the same town.
Usman Mustapha is a solution journalist with International Centre for Investigative Reporting. You can easily reach him via: [email protected]. He tweets @UsmanMustapha_M