The former boyfriend of Ugandan athlete Rebecca Cheptegei, who died after he set her on fire, has himself died after succumbing to burns, an official at the Kenyan hospital where he was being treated has said.

Dickson Ndiema ambushed the marathon runner as she returned home from church more than a week ago, before dousing her with petrol and setting her ablaze.

Local administrators said the two had been in conflict over a small piece of land in north-west Kenya, where Cheptegei lived and trained.

Ndiema died on Monday night at the intensive care unit where he had been admitted with more than 30% burns.