In a hurry? Here’s a quick summary…
- Olympic runner Rebecca Cheptegei is hospitalized after being set on fire by her boyfriend in a domestic violence incident, highlighting the rising cases of violence against female athletes.
- The incident follows the tragic deaths of runners Damaris Mutua and Agnes Tirop, both killed by their partners, underscoring the ongoing dangers faced by women in sports.
The recent news of 2024 Paris Olympic runner Rebecca Cheptegei fighting for her life in the hospital has brought attention to the alarming rise in domestic violence cases against female athletes, some of which have tragically ended in death.
Cheptegei, who finished 44th in the women’s marathon event in Paris, was involved in a violent altercation with her boyfriend at her home in Endebess, Trans Nzoia County.
The confrontation escalated horrifically when Cheptegei’s boyfriend doused her in petrol and set her on fire.
Neighbors intervened, rushing both Cheptegei and her boyfriend, who also suffered severe burns, to Moi Referral Hospital in Eldoret.
Trans Nzoia County’s police commander, Jeremiah ole Kosiom, confirmed that the suspect sustained serious injuries after being caught in the flames.
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Cheptegei, a 33-year-old athlete, had previously been hailed as one of Uganda’s rising stars.
She had won gold at the 2022 World Mountain and Trail Running Championships in Thailand, earning recognition for her achievements.
However, this tragic incident highlights the intense challenges female athletes face as they juggle their demanding careers with societal expectations and family pressures.
This case is part of a larger pattern of violence against women in sports. A survey by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) revealed that 34% of women have experienced physical or sexual abuse since the age of 15. Sadly, Cheptegei’s story is not unique.
In 2022, Kenyan runner Damaris Mutua was found strangled in her home in Iten, her face covered with a pillow.
Mutua, a decorated athlete, had won bronze at the 1,000-meter inaugural Youth Olympic Games in Singapore and set a personal best in Morocco in 2018.
Despite switching allegiance to Bahrain, she continued to train in Kapsabet and had recently secured a second-place finish at the Arab Cross Country Championship in Bahrain and third at the Luanda half marathon.
Mutua’s promising career was tragically cut short, as was that of two-time World Athletics Championships bronze medalist Agnes Tirop, who was found stabbed in the same town just six months earlier.
Tirop had enjoyed success both as a junior and senior athlete, winning bronze in the 5,000 meters at the World Championships in 2012 and 2014, and gold at the 2015 World Cross Country Championships.
Just a month before her death, Tirop broke the women’s 10km road-race record in Germany, setting a new time of 30 minutes and one second.
In both cases, the athletes’ partners were identified by law enforcement as the primary suspects.
These tragic incidents paint a grim picture of the violence female athletes continue to face, underscoring the urgent need for greater protection and support for women in sports.