Ugandan marathoner Rebecca Cheptegei suffered 80 per cent burns

Doctors have described Ugandan athlete Rebecca Cheptegei’s condition as critical, but stable after she sustained 80 per cent burns in an alleged domestic attack involving her partner.

Cheptegei was referred to Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital (MTRH) in Eldoret for specialised treatment on Monday from Kitale County Referral Hospital in Trans Nzoia County where she had been admitted on Sunday after her partner Dickson Marangach alleged doused her with petrol before setting her on fire.

Marangach also sustained 30 per cent burns from the incident and is under treatment in the same hospital

According to MTRH Acting CEO, Dr Owen Menach, who is the Director of Clinical Services and Surgery, they received a high profile patient, who was in critical condition from Kitale County Referral Hospital, and was given specialised treatment due to the grave nature of injuries.

“The patient had burns of 80 per cent and is incubated, fully sedated due to the extent of the burns and she is in full support in terms of blood, water, medications and breathing through a ventilator,” said Dr Menach.

Cheptegei is in the Intensive Care Unit.

She represented Uganda in the Paris Olympic Games finishing 44^th in the women’s marathon.

Dr Josephat Kerema, the Head of Depart Intensive Care Unit (ICU), said that the athlete had sustained severe burns from open flames on her whole body and was under sedation.

“We are doing the first phase of management which normally takes up to 72 hours which will guide us in the next stage of action and sometimes the patient might be taken to the theatre depending on the extent of the burns,” said Dr Kerema.

He added that the most important thing was to make sure the patient did not get multiple organ failure, adding that she also sustained burns on her throat and the airwaves.

The marathoner’s father, Joseph Cheptegei, who was at the hospital said: “I went to church as usual. We normally switch off our phones but later in the evening at about 4pm, I got information that my daughter had been burnt by somebody well known to her. They were just friends. I rushed to Kitale County Referral Hospital where she was admitted.”

He said that there had been wrangles between his daughter and Marangach  and accused the man of trying to defraud his child of her land.

The senior Cheptegei said that his daughter opted to buy land in Kenya and build a house as she did most of her training in Kenya where she was raising her two children.

He added that she later met Marangach and a friendship developed leading to them staying together.

However, differences forced them to go their separate ways.

“The two stayed together when my daughter came to train in Kenya but he is not the husband. After sometime, wrangles emerged concerning properties and we even have a case with the Directorate of Criminal Investigations,” said the father.

“She was just from the Olympics after representing Uganda in a marathon and had come to Kenya because of a case filed with police but now this unfortunate thing has happened,” said the distraught father.

Rebecca Cheptegei is also an officer with the Uganda People’s Defence Force.

She holds the Ugandan women’s marathon record of 2:22:47 set in the Abu Dhabi Marathon in the United Arab Emirates on December, 17, 2022.

She represented Uganda at the 2023 Budapest World Athletics Championships finishing 14^th in the women’s marathon.