Kenya's 'epidemic of violence' against female athletes

Murder of Olympic marathon runner Rebecca Cheptegei spotlights 'trend' of killings and wider culture of domestic abuse

Uganda's Rebecca Cheptegei competing in the women's marathon final in the World Athletics Championships in 2023
Cheptegei, Uganda's marathon record holder who came 44th in last month's Paris Games, was set on fire outside her home in Kenya
(Image credit: Ferenc Isza / AFP / Getty Images)

The murder of a Ugandan marathon runner returning from the Paris Olympics has "highlighted a horrifying trend in Kenya", said The Sunday Times

Rebecca Cheptegei, 33, died of burns last week in Eldoret, western Kenya. Dickson Ndiema, her ex-partner, had "poured petrol over her and set her alight" as she and her young daughters were collecting clothes from a washing line outside her home.

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Harriet Marsden is a writer for The Week, mostly covering UK and global news and politics. Before joining the site, she was a freelance journalist for seven years, specialising in social affairs, gender equality and culture. She worked for The Guardian, The Times and The Independent, and regularly contributed articles to The Sunday Times, The Telegraph, The New Statesman, Tortoise Media and Metro, as well as appearing on BBC Radio London, Times Radio and “Woman’s Hour”. She has a master’s in international journalism from City University, London, and was awarded the "journalist-at-large" fellowship by the Local Trust charity in 2021.