Ugandan athlete Rebecca Cheptegei is in critical condition in a Kenyan hospital after being doused with petrol and set on fire by her ex-boyfriend.
The 33-year-old marathon runner, who competed in the recent Paris Olympics, suffered severe burns, doctors said.
She was attacked at her home in western Kenya where she was training.
There are concerns about increasing violence against female athletes in Kenya, some of which have resulted in deaths.
Ms Cheptegei was reportedly rescued by neighbours after the incident on Sunday at her home in the small town of Endebess.
She was on her way back from church with her two children when she was targeted.
Local police chief Jeremiah ole Kosiom told reporters the alleged attacker also suffered serious burns.
“The couple were heard arguing outside their home. During the scuffle, the boyfriend was seen pouring liquid on the woman before setting her on fire,” Mr Kosiom was quoted as saying.
Ms Cheptegei, who comes from an area just across the Ugandan border, is said to have bought a plot of land in Trans Nzoia county and built a house close to many of Kenya’s sports training centres.
A report filed by a local administrator said the two had been arguing over the land. Police said an investigation was underway.
The two are being treated at the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Eldoret, the main town in the region.
Dr Owen Benach, the hospital’s senior director of clinical services, told reporters that “a high-profile patient” had been “fully anaesthetised due to the extent of the burns”. He said the hospital was fully equipped to deal with the difficult situation both patients were in.
Speaking to reporters, Ms Cheptegei’s father, Joseph Cheptegei, said he had been praying “for justice for my daughter”.
Ms Cheptegei finished 44th in the marathon at the recent Paris Olympics.
She also won a gold medal at the World Trail Running and Mountaineering Championships in Chiang Mai, Thailand in 2022.
In April 2022, another female runner, Damaris Mutua, was found strangled in a house with a pillow covering his face in the town of Iten in the Rift Valley.
It comes months after record-breaking long-distance runner Agnes Tirop found stabbed to death in the same town
In both cases, their sexual partners were identified by authorities as prime suspects.
Ms Tirop’s husband is now facing murder charges, which he denies, while the search for Ms Mutua’s boyfriend continues.
Men are also targeted.
Last December, another Ugandan athlete, Benjamin Kiplagat was stabbed to death by attackers in Eldoret.
Additional reporting by BBC’s Celestine Karoney.
