Cheptegei’s attacker, Dickson Ndiema, bought a can of petrol, poured it on her and set it on fire during an argument last Sunday. Ndiema was also burned and was being treated at the same hospital.
The Ugandan Olympic marathon runner Rebecca Cheptegei She died in a Kenyan hospital where she was being treated after 80% of her body was burned by an attack by her partner. She was 33 years old.
A spokesperson for Moi University Hospital in the city of Eldoret confirmed Cheptegei’s death on Thursday. Menach said the long-distance runner died early in the morning after multiple organ failure. She had been completely sedated upon entering the hospital.
On Wednesday his condition had worsened after having “developed a bacterial infection due to sepsis,” a doctor said.
Cheptegei competed in the women’s marathon at the Paris Olympics less than a month before the attack. She finished in 44th place.
His father, Joseph Cheptegeitold reporters at the hospital that he had lost a daughter whom he supported “a lot” and that he hopes to get justice.
The Ugandan athletics federation said in a message that it was “deeply saddened” by the death of its athlete, a “tragic victim of marital violence.”
Trans Nzoia County Police Commander, Jeremiah ole Kosiomsaid on Monday that Cheptegei’s partner, Dickson Ndiema, bought a can of gasoline, poured it on it and set it on fire Sunday in front of his daughters, ages 9 and 11. Ndiema was also burned and is being treated at the same hospital.
