The ex-boyfriend of Ugandan athlete Rebecca Cheptegei (Dickson Ndiema Marangach) accused of killing her after dousing her with gasoline and setting her on fire, also died due to severe burns he suffered during the attack, the Kenyan hospital where he was being treated said Tuesday.

Cheptegei, 33, who competed in the Paris Olympics marathon (she finished 44th) suffered burns over 75% of her body in the September 1 attack and died four days later in the hospital. Her ex-boyfriend, Dickson Ndiema Marangach, died Monday afternoon, said Daniel Lang’at, spokesman for Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Eldoret, western Kenya, where the athlete was also treated and died. “She passed away from her injuries, the burns she sustained,” Lang’at told Reuters.

ANOTHER ELITE ATHLETE FROM KENYA TO BE KILLED

Cheptegei is the third elite sportswoman to be killed in Kenya since October 2021. Her tragic death has put the spotlight on domestic violence in the country, especially within the running community, an issue that has generated growing concern in the region.

Human rights organizations say female athletes in Kenya are at high risk of exploitation and violence by men attracted by the prize money they win, amounts that considerably exceed local incomes.

A WORRYING RATE OF ABUSE

According to Kenyan government data from 2022, about 34% of girls and women between the ages of 15 and 49 have experienced physical violence, with married women being the most vulnerable. The same study revealed that 41% of married women have faced violence.

Globally, a 2023 UN Women study indicates that a woman is killed by someone in her own family every 11 minutes, reflecting the magnitude of the problem of gender-based violence worldwide. Rebecca Cheptegei’s case has not only shocked the international sports community, but has also reignited the debate on the urgent need to address and prevent domestic violence in Kenya.