Ugandan athlete Rebecca Cheptegei, who competed at the 2024 Paris Olympics, is in critical condition in Kenya after being allegedly attacked by her partner, police in the African country reported.
“Cheptegei is in intensive care in critical condition with burns on 80% of his body“Owen Menach, director of the hospital where she is being treated, told reporters.We are doing everything we can to save his life.“, he added.
He also reported that The alleged attacker, treated in the same hospital as the victim, has burns on 30% of his body..
The athlete’s father and sister are already in the town where Rebecca Cheptegei is hospitalized.
How did the attack on the athlete occur?
The 33-year-old long-distance runner was attacked by her partner, Kenyan athlete Dickson Ndiema Marangach, who sneaked into her home in Trans-Nzoia County (west of the country) on Sunday 1 September at around 2pm and waited for her and her children to return from church, according to the police report consulted by AFP.
According to police, neighbours rescued the couple and took them to Kitale County Hospital where they were admitted “with multiple burns”.
Security forces did not say whether the athlete’s children were injured during the attack.
Official convictions in Uganda
According to local media, the family said Cheptegei bought a piece of land in the town of Endebess, 25 kilometres from the border with Uganda, and built a house so he could train in the area.
Police also said the couple had “constant family arguments” and the case is now being investigated by law enforcement.
He President of the Ugandan Olympic Committee, Donald Rukare, He said the athlete had been “brutally attacked” and wished her a full recovery.
“We must all say NO to violence, especially against women. It is totally unacceptable and we condemn this attack.“, he wrote on his social media account X.
The Ugandan Athletics Federation also expressed its regret at the incident, writing on X that Cheptegei had “suffered serious injuries.”
How was the athlete’s participation in the Paris Olympics?
Rebecca Cheptegei finished 44th in the Olympic marathon at the Paris Olympic Games.
In 2021, in Kenya, the murder of 25-year-old athlete Agnes Tirop, who was found stabbed in her home, horrified the country.
Her ex-husband Emmanuel Ibrahim Rotich was charged with murder in 2023. He denied the charges and the trial is ongoing.
Source: https://www.noticiascaracol.com/mundo/atleta-de-olimpicos-de-paris-entre-la-vida-y-la-muerte-tras-ser-quemada-por-su-pareja-cb20
