Kenyan runner killed in post-election violence

NAIROBI (Reuters) - Kenyan marathon runner Wesley Ngetich has been shot and killed by a poisoned arrow, the second international athlete to die in post-election violence in the east African country.

"We have received word from Ngetich's manager and we deeply regret Ngetich's demise," Athletics Kenya's secretary, David Okeyo, told Reuters on Tuesday.

His American manager, Hussein Makke, was quoted in U.S. newspapers saying the athlete was a victim of a poisoned arrow attack during fighting in his home town of Trans Mara, at the edge of world famous Maasai Mara Game Reserve on Monday.

Ngetich, 34, had been lined up for a series of road races in the United States in the coming weeks.

Lucas Sang, who was a 4x400 metre finalist at the 1988 Seoul Olympics, was killed on New Year's eve in Kenya's worst violence since independence from Britain in 1963.

Another athlete, world marathon champion Luke Kibet, narrowly escaped death after being struck by a stone.

Ngetich set his personal best time of 2:12:10 in 2006 when he finished second at the Houston Marathon in the United States.

About 650 people have been killed in violence since last month and 250,000 displaced in fighting that started after election results for the December 27 vote were announced.

(Reporting by Jack Oyoo; editing by Keith Weir)