Ugandan Olympian who died after being set on fire by her partner receives military funeral

BUKWO, Uganda (AP) — Thousands of people in Uganda paid tribute Saturday to Rebecca Cheptegei, the Olympic athlete who died last week in Kenya. after her partner set her on fireThe military funeral took place in a remote village near the Kenyan border.

Military officers played a prominent role in the funeral because Cheptegei held the rank of sergeant in the Ugandan army, military spokesman Brigadier General Felix Kulayigye said, adding that she deserved “a gun salute befitting her rank.”

Athletes, family members and others delivered eulogies to thousands of people at a sports ground in Bukwo district. Many condemned domestic violence.

“As a nation, we are living through a very dark time,” said Ajilong B. Modestar, Bukwo District Commissioner. “We condemn in the strongest possible terms the manner in which Rebecca died… We should not continue to beat women in this manner.”

Cheptegei, who was 33, was buried at her father’s house.

He died after his body was burned 80% in the attack by Dickson Ndiema, who He doused her with gasoline at his home in Trans-Nzoia County, western Kenya, on September 3. Ndiema suffered burns to 30 percent of his body and later succumbed to his injuries.

According to a report filed by the local chief, they quarreled over a piece of land the athlete bought in Kenya.

The horrific petrol attack shocked many and strengthened calls for protection for female runners facing exploitation and abuse in the East African country.

Cheptegei’s body was returned to Uganda on Friday in a sombre procession following a street march by dozens of activists in the western Kenyan town of Eldoret demanding an end to violence against female athletes.

Cheptegei is the fourth female athlete to be killed by her partner in Kenya, in a worrying pattern of gender-based violence in recent years. High rates of violence against women in Kenya have provoked several marches This year.

Ugandan authorities condemned the attack and demanded justice for Cheptegei. First Lady Janet Museveni, who is also Uganda’s Minister of Education and Sports, described the attack as “deeply disturbing.”

Don Rukare, chairman of the Uganda National Sports Council, said in a statement on X that the attack was “a cowardly and senseless act that has led to the loss of a great athlete.”

Four in ten women, or about 41% of Kenyan women who are married or dating, have experienced physical or sexual violence perpetrated by their current or most recent partner, according to the 2022 Kenya Demographic and Health Survey.

Many Ugandan athletes train across the border in Kenya, an athletics powerhouse with better facilities. Some of the region’s best runners train together at a high-altitude centre in western Kenya.

Cheptegei competed in the women’s marathon in The Paris Olympicsfinishing 44th less than a month before the attack. He had represented Uganda in other competitions.

Muhumuza reported from Kampala, Uganda.