Athletics fraternity mourns sudden death of promising runner Willy Chelawa

The athletics community is in mourning again following the sudden death of up-and-coming runner Willy Chelawa at his training base in Kaptagat, Elgeyo Marakwet County.

Chelawa, who recently competed in the Nairobi City Half Marathon, finishing 65th, was found dead by his training partners.

Concerns arose when Chelawa missed a morning training session. His fellow athletes, unable to locate him, initiated a search at a Kaptagat Hotel, where he had been staying.

Speaking to Nation Sport, training partner William Rotich shared that he had last seen Chelawa on Saturday before returning home.

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Chelawa, who lived far away and had no immediate family, opted to stay at the camp to rest.

On Monday, when Chelawa still had not appeared for training, Rotich and others checked his room through the window, where they saw him lying face down.

"We thought he had collapsed, so we called out to him, but he didn’t respond. That’s when we broke down the door and discovered he had passed away. The police arrived shortly after and took the body to the Iten County Referral Hospital Mortuary," Rotich told Nation Sport.

Former Amsterdam Marathon champion Wilson Chebet, who confirmed the tragic news, expressed his shock at losing a cousin who had shown great promise in athletics.

"It's heartbreaking. He was healthy and had a bright future in running. He even planned to visit me over the weekend but chose to stay at the camp to rest after the Nairobi race. Losing him so suddenly is devastating," Chebet offered.

The news comes a few days after the sendoff of Olympian Rebecca Cheptegai.