Athletes hold procession in honor of Cheptegei ahead of burial

Dozens of athletes held a procession in northwestern Kenya with rousing calls to end gender-based violence, as they escorted Uganda Olympian Rebecca Cheptegei's casket as it began its final journey ahead of her funeral across the border.The body of Cheptegei, who died on September 1 after allegedly being set on fire by her partner in Kenya, was received by family and anti-femicide crusaders on Friday on the eve of her burial.

The Paris 2024 Olympic runner who finished 44th in the women's marathon will be buried in her ancestral home in Bukwo district, eastern Uganda with full military honors on Saturday.
"Not only is the killing of Rebbeca a case of femicide but also it's particularly a case of what we have seen happening to athletes here in Kenya.

"Kenya prides itself in the fact that it has a lot of training camps for athletes from across the world and if you are going to oblige global citizens to come to your country, to pay to train within your camp, you have an obligation to protect them," an activist, Mary Liz Biukwa, said during the procession.

Viola Cheptoo, the founder of Tirop Angels, an organization that was formed in honor of Kenyan athlete Agnes Tirop who was stabbed to death in 2021, said stakeholders need to ensure this is the last death of an athlete due to gender-based violence.

There was a sombre mood at the mortuary in Eldoret city as athletes and family members viewed Cheptegei's body which sustained 80 percent burns after she was reportedly doused with gasolineby her partner Dickson Ndiema. Ndiema who also sustained 30 percent burns on his body also succumbed on Monday evening.The estranged couple are reported to have quarreled over a piece of land the athlete bought in Kenya before the attack. (UNI)<>