The funeral for Ugandan Olympic runner Rebecca Cheptegei, who died in Kenya after being set on fire by her boyfriend, will be place on September 14 in her native country, organizers announced Sunday.
The 33-year-old, who ran in the women’s marathon at the Paris Olympics last month, died from serious burns on Thursday, four days after being doused with petrol and set on fire at her house in western Kenya.
“The burial date of Rebecca Cheptegei has been set for September 14, in Kongasis sub county in Bukwo district (eastern Uganda),” Beatrice Ayikoru, secretary general of the Uganda Olympic Committee and a member of the funeral organising committee, told AFP.
Bukwo, Cheptegei’s family home, is located on the Kenyan border some 380 kilometers (240 miles) northeast of Uganda’s capital, Kampala.
Cheptegei’s killing sparked outrage and sorrow, marking the latest horrible instance of gender-based violence in Kenya, where at least two other athletes have died at the hands of their spouses.
Police claim the attack was carried out on Sunday last week by Cheptegei’s Kenyan lover, Dickson Ndiema Marangach, who also received burns and is in the hospital.