Murdered Uganda Olympian Rebecca Cheptegei’s funeral march begins in Kenya

Activists join the march in Eldoret, Kenya, as Cheptegei’s body begins its final journey to her family home in Bukwo, Uganda, for her funeral.

The body of murdered Olympian Rebecca Cheptegei has begun its journey home to Uganda, accompanied by activists calling for an end to gender-based violence in Kenya.

The 33-year-old athlete succumbed to her wounds on September 5 after being attacked four days earlier by her Kenyan partner, who poured petrol over her and set her on fire.

It happened just weeks after she made her Olympic debut in the women’s marathon in Paris, where she finished 44th.

Her funeral is planned for Saturday in Bukwo, home to her family in Uganda, but relatives in Kenya paid their respects on Friday in the Rift Valley town of Eldoret, near where she lived.

The cortege of slain Olympian Rebecca Cheptegei leaves the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital funeral home in Eldoret, Kenya [Edwin Waita/Reuters]

Cheptegei is the third athlete to have died in Kenya as a result of gender-based violence since 2021, provoking a global outpouring of tributes and rage.

Tony Sabila, Cheptegei’s uncle, described her as “a pillar to the family” and expressed his sadness over her loss.

As the body passed through the town of Eldoret, scores of activists lined the road with others walking alongside the hearse.

At a rally the same day, many wore white shirts with an image of Cheptegei and carried white or red roses.

Others had signs reading, “Being a woman should not be a death sentence,” and “A house where a woman is not safe is not a home.”

Family members mourn next to Cheptegei’s coffin in Eldoret, Kenya [Edwin Waita/Reuters]

Cheptegei was attacked outside her house in Endebass in Kenya. Local media reported her young daughters and teenage sister witnessed the assault.

Her attacker, 32-year-old Dickson Ndiema Marangach, was also severely burned and died in hospital on Monday.

Her father, Joseph Cheptegei, told reporters the dispute with Marangach had been over the property where she lived with her sister and daughters. He told Kenyan media last week that Marangach had bought 5 litres (1.3 gallons) of petrol and then hid out in a chicken coop before the attack.

“He poured the petrol and lit her on fire. When she called her sister to help, he threatened her with a machete, and she ran away.”

The police said the couple had “constantly had family wrangles”.

Agnes Cheptegei mourns her daughter Rebecca Cheptegei [Edwin Waita/Reuters]

The United Nations condemned her “violent murder” with Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, saying: “Gender-based violence is one of the most prevalent human rights violations in the world and should be treated as such.”

Throughout Kenya, 41 percent of women who have been married have experienced physical violence, compared with 20 percent of those who have not been married.

At least 500 women and girls have been murdered in Kenya since 2016, according to the UN.

Figures from UN Women Africa show that globally, there were 89,000 reports of women and girls murdered in 2022, the highest number recorded in 20 years. More than half of the women and girls were killed by intimate partners or other family members.

Kenya’s sports minister, Kipchumba Murkomen, said the Olympian’s death was a “stark reminder” that more must be done to combat gender-based violence.