Two-time World Championship bronze medalist Agnes Tirop was found dead at her home in Iten, Kenya, and her husband has been named prime suspect in what’s been officially termed a homicide.
What happened to Agnes Tirop?
In a statement published by Athletics Kenya (AK) on Wednesday, it was confirmed that the 10 000m bronze medalist was “allegedly stabbed by her husband.”
“Kenya has lost a jewel who was one of the fastest-running athletics giants on the international stage, thanks to her eye-catching performances on the track,” the Kenyan athletics authority wrote.
— Athletics Kenya (@athletics_kenya) October 13, 2021
According to reports, Tirop’s body was discovered by police after her father had reported her missing. Police commissioner of Iten Tom Makori told reporters that evidence collected inside the home have led them to believe that the 25-year-old’s husband is behind the murder.
“When [police] got in the house, they found Tirop on the bed and there was a pool of blood on the floor. They saw she had been stabbed in the neck, which led us to believe it was a knife wound, and we believe that is what caused her death,” he revealed.
What we know about Tirop
The Kenyan athlete was only just starting to find her peak form. Just last month, she broke a record in the women’s 10km run at the Road to Records race in Germany, clocking 30 minutes and one second.
“Last week, she finished an impressive second, timing 30:20 (minutes:seconds) at the Valencia Half Marathon,” AK added.
Some of Tirop’s achievements in her budding career included:
- a World Cross-country title in 2015, making history as the second-youngest medalist at that level;
- the Africa Cross-country Championship in 2014, Kampala, Uganda; and
- the World Junior Cross-country Championship obtained in 2013, in Bydgoszcz, Poland
Agnes Tirop murder: Where is the husband?
At the time this article was published, Tirop’s husband was still at large. According to Makori, all resources have been honed in on the athlete’s investigation and on top of their list is tracking down the man believed to be responsible for the murder.
“Her husband is still at large, and preliminary investigations tell us her husband is a suspect because he cannot be found. Police are trying to find her husband so he can explain what happened to Tirop,” he said.