Just weeks ago, 33-year-old Ugandan runner Rebecca Cheptegei was competing in the Paris Olympis.
In a tragic and heartbreaking turn of events, Cheptegei died this morning from burns covering most of her body.
Cheptegei was attacked after coming home from church with her two daughters. She'd been living in northwest Kenya, where she had bought a piece of land so she could build a home, close to the training grounds that have produced so many of East Africa's running stars.
Local police say she was fighting with her ex-boyfriend over this piece of land when he allegedly doused her in petrol and set her on fire on Sunday.
Dr. Owen Menach from the hospital in Eldoret told reporters that, "All her organs failed." The ex-boyfriend is still in intensive care with burns, but he's stable.
Cheptegei's father, Joseph, spoke to journalists outside the hospital, "I've never seen such an inhumane act in my life," he said.
The running world is in shock. Cheptegei wasn't just any athlete - she was 44th in the Olympic marathon and a world champion in mountain running.
This isn't just about one athlete, though. Cheptegei is the third female runner killed in Kenya since late 2021. It's a pattern that's impossible to ignore and raises serious questions about the safety of women in athletics there.
* BBC Sports contributed to this article.
