The brutal murder of Kenyan superstar athlete Agnes Tirop

Agnes Tirop was en route to becoming a world and Olympic champion when she was murdered in her home by her husband. The backlash to such heinous acts spurred a movement against gender-based violence. This is her story.

Born in Kenya in 1995, Tirop was destined for the top of her chosen discipline since she was young, competing in both the 2012 and 2014 World Junior Championships in the 5,000 and 10,000m events.

During her junior career, and into her senior career, one of Tirop’s biggest rivals in the 10,000m event was countrywoman, Faith Kipyegon, whom she finished behind in the 2012 African Cross Country Championships, per the IAAF.

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2015 saw Tirop move into the senior ranks, winning the 2015 IAAF World Cross Country Championships, despite being the fourth-youngest competitor in the field, per World Athletics.

Dabbling in both cross-country and track racing, Tirop focused on the latter in 2017, entering the World Championships in London. There, she would finish third, with a personal best time of 31:03.50.

In the same competition and race two years later, Tirop wasn’t able to better her finish, claiming the bronze medal once more.

At the COVID-delayed 2020 Olympics, Tirop participated in the 5,000m race for her country, just missing out on a medal by finishing fourth, per Runner’s World.

Later that year, Tirop participated in a women-only 10-kilometre race where she smashed the world record, held since 2002, by 28 seconds, per the Olympics website.

Just a month after her world record, Tirop was found dead at her home, having suffered stab wounds to her neck and abdomen. Her husband was immediately the prime suspect, having called his family and asking for forgiveness. Following a long car chase, Tirop’s murderer was caught and arrested, per CBS News.

The outpouring of grief from the world of athletics was palpable, with World Athletics President Sebastian Coe saying, “Athletics has lost one of its brightest young stars in the most tragic circumstances… This is a terrible blow to the entire athletics community, but especially to her family, her friends and Athletics Kenya and I send them all our most heartfelt condolences.”

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Grief for Tirop was not confined to the athletics community, with Kenya president Uhuru Kenyatta paying tribute, “It is unsettling, utterly unfortunate and very sad that we've lost a young and promising athlete who, at a young age of 25 years, had brought our country so much glory”. He would even call Tirop a “Kenyan hero” later in his statement.

Tirop’s death was a catalyst for many in Kenya, with many of the nation’s women athletes rallying around an ongoing issue in the nation, gender-based violence.

At Tirop’s funeral, fellow Kenyan athlete Violah Lagat gave a powerful speech, saying, “Today I am here because of one issue: this gender-based violence issue. I am standing here because something has to be done. And it has to be done now, not tomorrow, not any other day, it has to start today.”

Lagat’s speech continued, and she finished with this powerful statement, “Men, understand this, we are athletes but we are also someone’s children. Please respect us, please love us, please value our hard wok,” per the Olympics website.

Lagat, along with fellow runner Joan Chelimo, have worked with Tirop’s family to create a non-governmental organisation, Tirop’s Angels. Tirop’s Angels aims to educate young women about gender-based violence in Kenya.

Chelimo told the Olympics media, “In the past you would find most female athletes, their money would be taken away by their husbands,” with Lagat adding, “We try to empower them and also talk to them about what gender-based violence is, on a shallow level because they don’t understand it quite well until they are a little bit older”.

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