Dickson Ndiema, the man accused of murdering Olympic marathon runner Rebecca Cheptegei, has died in hospital.

Cheptegei, who finished 44th in the womens marathon at this summers Olympic Games in Paris, passed away last week after being set on fire by her former partner Ndiema.

The 33-year-old Ugandan athlete had been in intensive care for several days with horrific burns to more than 80 per cent of her body.

An official police report claimed that Ndeima had doused Cheptegei in petrol in her home before setting her alight following an argument. The Olympian had been at church with her children and was confronted by Ndiema on her return.

It has been widely reported that Cheptegai and Ndiema had been in dispute over the land where the house had been built in western Kenya.

On Monday night, the Kenya Star and Nation newspapers confirmed that Ndeima had also succumbed to the 30 per cent burns he suffered during the attack.

He had been treated at the Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital in Eldoret, Kenya, where Cheptegei died just days earlier.

A postmortem on the body of Cheptegei, Ugandas national record holder in the womens marathon, will be carried out on Wednesday.

The hospital asked us to have the postmortem done and we accepted because it will help us to know what led to her death and also it will be part of closure for us as we mourn her death, Cheptegeis father Mzee Cheptegei said.

Cheptegei was a member of the Uganda People Defense Forces (UPDF) and will be laid to rest with full military honors.

High-profile officials from both Kenya and Uganda are expected to be in attendance at the funeral.

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One of Cheptegeis daughters witnessed the horrendous attack and immediately alerted a neighbour in an attempt to save her mother from the flames.

He kicked me while I tried to run to the rescue of my mother, she told Kenyan publication The Standard.

I immediately cried out for help, attracting a neighbour who tried to extinguish the flames with water but it was not possible.

Thomas Bach, the president of the International Olympic Committee, said Cheptegais involvement at the Olympics had been a source of inspiration across the globe.

We are shocked and deeply saddened to learn about Rebecca Cheptegeis death following the horrible attack against her, Bach said.

Rebeccas participation in the Paris 2024 womens marathon was a source of inspiration, pride and joy.

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