Rebecca Cheptegei accorded military burial in Uganda [PHOTOS]

The air hung heavy in Bukwo District, Uganda as Olympian Rebecca Cheptegei’s lifeless body was accorded its last respects. The athlete who held the rank of a sergeant in Uganda’s army was given a gun salute military funeral on Saturday 17 September.

Emotions ran high, tears flowed freely among the gathering crowd. Covered with sorrow, the public could not contain their emotions as they bid farewell to the legend gone too soon.

Cheptegei’s family including her two daughters Joy and Charity and her parents struggled to contain their anguish, grappling with the harsh reality that their beloved kin had departed.

In attendance was the Kenyan Cabinet Secretary in charge of Youth Affairs, Creative Economy and Sports Kipchumba Murkomen, Sports Director Jackson Indakwa, Athletics Kenya President Jackson Tuwei, and Nandi County Governor Stephen Sang.

A contingent of Kenyan athletes who included Mary Keitany, Joan Chelimo, Faith Cherop, Daniel Komen, Gilbert Kemboi, Vanessa Chemutai, and Shadrack Koech were also present.

Uganda was represented by Minister of Education and Sports Janet Kataaha Museveni.

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Addressing the mourners, CS Murkomen expressed his heartfelt condolences, noting that Cheptegei’s death served as a wake-up call for both country and athletics federations to come up with laws and actions to protect the female athletes.

He eulogized Cheptegei as a loving mother, decorated sergeant, and an inspiration to upcoming athletes. Before her death, Cheptegei represented Uganda in the marathon at the Paris Olympics where she finished in position 44.

“She inspired many upcoming female athletes for the marathon record she holds in Uganda. This act calls for us to prick our conscience, and push us to action and work together to stop cases of GBV. Hers is not the first to happen,” the CS offered.

In 2021, after Agnes Tirop’s untimely death, Athletics Kenya constituted a Sports Committee on Gender Welfare and Equity to enter the murky waters of unravelling what is ailing the industry.

The committee discovered all forms of GBV, including sexual exploitation, physical and emotional abuse, intimidation and manipulation, which are being committed by coaches, team officials and even teammates.

CS Murkomen noted that his administration would oversee the implementation of the committee’s recommendations in a bid to solve the unending menace.

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“In the next two weeks, I will be constituting a multi-agency committee that will begin the process of implementing the recommendations so that female athletes can enjoy the safety just as their male counterparts,” he stated.

He went on to note that the fight against gender-based violence (GBV) required more than just government intervention, calling on communities to take an active role in addressing the issue.

“Government and the community are both guilty. We have become individualistic. We ignore that Rebecca was in an abusive relationship. If your daughter comes to you and says she is facing any form of violence, there is no benefit in insisting she remains there.

Let us open doors for our daughters to come home if they are facing challenges. At the end of the day, it is better to have your child alive,” the candid CS revealed.

On her side, Kenyan athletes representative Mary Keitany called on both governments to take care of their athletes, noting that they go through lots of challenges to represent their countries.

She further urged athletes to prioritize self-love and be cautious when choosing their partners, noting that the right partner should support their goals and personal growth.

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“We are mourning as a country. We are sorry for what happened and we pray for God's intervention because it is not easy to lose a young person. She was a mother, daughter and sister to someone. She was not sick, no accident.

It is so unfortunate. We ask both governments to please take care of athletes and their lives. It has never been easy. Athletes undergo a lot of challenges. We do not know what is happening. We also call on the church to pray for us,” Keitany said.

Cheptegei’s body arrived in her rural hometown in Uganda on Friday afternoon. The casket, draped in Ugandan flag colours, was received by her family, officials from the Uganda Athletics Federation, and government representatives at the Suam border town between Kenya and Uganda. It was later driven around Bukwo town for the local people to celebrate her life.