NHL player Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matthew were killed by a suspected drunken driver while riding bicycles Thursday night near their childhood home in New Jersey. They were set to be groomsmen on Friday at their sister Katie's wedding.
Gaudreau was known around the sport as “Johnny Hockey," a nickname coined by fans when he starred at Boston College from 2011-14. He helped BC win the national title in 2012 and took home the Hobey Baker Award as the NCAA's top player two years later.
The Gaudreau brothers grew up in the Philadelphia suburb of Carneys Point, New Jersey, where they spent their entire childhoods on the ice. They played at Gloucester Catholic High School, with Team Comcast and with the Philadelphia Little Flyers.
Johnny Gaudreau was a fourth-round pick of the Calgary Flames in 2011 and made his NHL debut in 2014 just after playing his final college game. He was named to the league's all-rookie team during his first full professional season.
Gaudreau in 2017 won the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy, awarded to the player who exhibits sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct combined with a high standard of playing ability. He was perennially one of the top players in the sport and in 2021-22 set career highs with 40 goals, 75 assists and 115 points.
That summer, he signed a seven-year contract worth $68.25 million with the Columbus Blue Jackets as the top free agent on the market. He made two more All-Star Weekend appearances, giving him seven total.
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FILE - Columbus Blue Jackets' Johnny Gaudreau (13) awaits the face-off during an NHL hockey game against the Nashville Predators, Saturday, March 9, 2024, in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Aaron Doster, file)
FILE - Columbus Blue Jackets' Johnny Gaudreau (13) plays against the Nashville Predators during the second period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, April 13, 2024, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey, File)
FILE - Columbus Blue Jackets forward Johnny Gaudreau warms up before an NHL hockey game against the Pittsburgh Penguins in Columbus, Ohio, Saturday, March 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Paul Vernon, File)
FILE - Unted States' Johnny Gaudreau, right, challenges for a puck with Latvia's Janis Jaks during the preliminary round match between Latvia and United States at the Ice Hockey World Championships in Ostrava, Czech Republic, Tuesday, May 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic, file)
BUKWO, Uganda (AP) — Dozens of mourners in Uganda paid respects to Rebecca Cheptegei, the Olympic athlete who died last week in Kenya after her partner set her on fire.
Local leaders and others gathered at the local administration hall Saturday as they awaited her burial at her ancestral home in a village near the Kenya border.
Cheptegei died after her body suffered 80% burns in the attack by Dickson Ndiema, who doused her in gasoline at her home in western Kenya’s Trans-Nzoia County on Sept. 3. Ndiema sustained 30% burns on his body and later succumbed to his injuries.
According to a report filed by the local chief, they quarreled over a piece of land the athlete bought in Kenya.
The horrific gasoline attack shocked many and strengthened calls for the protection of female runners facing exploitation and abuse in the East African country.
Cheptegei’s body was returned to Uganda Friday in a somber procession following a street march by dozens of activists in the western Kenyan town of Eldoret who demanded an end to physical violence against female athletes.
Cheptegei, who was 33, is the fourth female athlete to have been killed by her partner in Kenya in a worrying pattern of gender-based violence in recent years. Kenya’s high rates of violence against women have prompted several marches this year.
Ugandan officials have condemned the attack, demanding justice for Cheptegei. First lady Janet Museveni, who also serves as Uganda’s education and sports minister, described the attack as “deeply disturbing.”
Don Rukare, chairman of the National Council of Sports of Uganda, said in a statement on X that the attack was “a cowardly and senseless act that has led to the loss of a great athlete.”
Four in 10 women, or an estimated 41% of dating or married Kenyan women, have experienced physical or sexual violence perpetrated by their current or most recent partner, according to the 2022 Kenya Demographic and Health Survey.
Many Ugandan athletes train across the border in Kenya, an athletics powerhouse with better facilities. Some of the region’s best runners train together at a high-altitude center in Kenya’s west.
Cheptegei competed in the women’s marathon at the Paris Olympics, finishing in 44th place, less than a month before the attack. She had represented Uganda at other competitions.
Mourners pay respects to Ugandan athlete who died after her partner set her on fire
Mourners pay respects to Ugandan athlete who died after her partner set her on fire
FILE -Rebecca Cheptegei, competes at the Discovery 10km road race in Kapchorwa, Uganda, Jan. 20, 2023. (AP Photo, File)
