According to police, a Ugandan athlete who was living in Kenya when her boyfriend set her on fire is presently undergoing treatment for 75% of her burn injuries.
Attacked in her home in western Trans Nzoia County, Rebecca Cheptegei is a distance runner who placed 44th in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Trans Nzoia County Police Commander Jeremiah ole Kosiom said Monday that Cheptegei’s boyfriend, Dickson Ndiema, bought a jerrican of petrol, poured it on her and set her ablaze during a disagreement Sunday.
Ndiema also sustained burn wounds, and the two are receiving specialized treatment at the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Eldoret city.
Cheptegei’s parents said their daughter bought land in Trans Nzoia to be near the county’s many athletic training centers.
A report filed by the local chief states that the couple was heard fighting over the land where the house was built before the fire started.
In 2023, Ugandan Olympic runner and steeplechaser Benjamin Kiplagat was found dead with stab wounds.
In 2022, Kenyan-born Bahraini athlete Damaris Muthee was found dead with a postmortem report stating that she was strangled.
