The horrific death of Olympic runner Rebecca Cheptegea, who was doused with petrol and set on fire by her boyfriend, has once again exposed the shocking story of domestic violence against female athletes in Kenya.

Her murder is one of at least two other high-profile runners in the past three years who have been victims of domestic violence in a region that has produced many Olympic and world champions.

What happened to Cheptegei?

Cheptegei, from Uganda, died on Thursday at the age of 33. Police say Cheptegei’s boyfriend poured a can of petrol on her and set her on fire during an argument on Sunday. She suffered burns to 80 percent of her body and died in hospital in Eldoret four days later.

The boy also suffered burns in the attack and is being treated at the same hospital. No criminal charges have yet been announced against him.

Cheptegei competed in the women’s marathon at the Paris Olympics less than a month ago, finishing 44th. She lived in a famous high-altitude training region in western Kenya that attracts the world’s best distance runners, and recently built a house there to be close to training facilities.

Agnieszka Tyrop

The brutal killing of Kenyan running star Tiropa in the same region in 2021 sparked an outpouring of anger among other athletes and prompted the East African country’s athletics authorities to recognise the scourge of domestic violence as a serious problem.

Tirop was one of Kenya’s brightest when she was stabbed to death in her home in Iten, another world-famous training town for distance runners in Kenya, along with Eldoret. Her husband, who was at large, was arrested days after the killing and charged with murder. His court case is still ongoing.

Like Cheptegei, Tirop, 25, had just competed in the Olympics — the 2021 Tokyo Games — and set a new world record in the 10-kilometer road race in another event a month before her death. Her body was found with stab wounds to the abdomen and neck, as well as blunt trauma to the head.

In the weeks since Tirop’s death, current and former athletes have spoken out about what they say is a long-standing problem of domestic violence against female athletes in the region. Some have marched in the streets of Iten to demand better protection for female athletes and tougher laws against perpetrators of violence.

Other Kenyan athletes, such as Ruth Bosibori, a former African steeplechase champion, and Joan Chelimo, a marathon runner, said Tirop’s killing had emboldened them to speak out about their own abusive relationships.

Both women admitted that they had escaped from abusive partners, which made them fear for their lives.

Damaris Muthee

Just six months after Tirop, another runner died. Kenyan-born Muthee, who ran for Bahrain, was found dead in her Iten home from strangulation. Her decomposing body had been there for days before it was found, authorities said at the time.

The Ethiopian runner she was in a relationship with has been charged with murder. Muthee, who was 28, had a young child from another relationship.

Cases of domestic violence among runners in Kenya are a backdrop to the country’s high rates of violence against women, which prompted grassroots marches in cities this year.

Activists say successful female athletes may be particularly vulnerable in situations where their partners want to control their money and assets in a poor region, and the women refuse and resist.

Police said Cheptegei died following an argument with her boyfriend over land on which she had recently built a house.

Samuel Wanjiru

One of Kenya’s top athletes also died in 2011 in what authorities say was a domestic dispute. Wanjiru was 24 and the reigning Olympic marathon champion at the time. He fell from the balcony of his home during an argument with his wife and died.

A year earlier, he had been arrested and questioned by police for allegedly threatening to kill his wife with an assault rifle, an accusation he denied.

Although Kenyan authorities ruled that Wanjiru died from a fall or jump from a balcony, his family claimed he was killed.

AP Africa News:

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