Uganda Olympic runner Rebecca Cheptegei dies after being burned by her partner
Ugandan Olympic athlete Rebecca Cheptegei has died at a Kenyan hospital where she was being treated after 80% of her body was burned in an attack by her partner.
Ugandan Olympic athlete Rebecca Cheptegei has died at a Kenyan hospital where she was being treated after 80% of her body was burned in an attack by her partner. She was 33.
The country’s sports minister said authorities must do more to combat gender-based violence.
A spokesperson at Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Eldoret city, Owen Menach, confirmed Cheptegei’s death on Thursday. Menach said the long-distance runner died early in the morning after her organs failed. She had been fully sedated on admission at the hospital.
Cheptegei competed in the women’s marathon at the Paris Olympics less than a month before the attack. She finished in 44th place.
Her father, Joseph Cheptegei, told journalists at the hospital that he had lost a daughter who was “very supportive” and hopes to get justice.
Rating: 5