Rohan Dennis’ wife, Melissa Hoskins, returned to the Olympic Games as part of the Australian team in the team pursuit at the 2016 Summer Olympics.
Former world champion cyclist Rohan Dennis has negotiated a plea deal with prosecutors over the death of his wife, fellow Australian Olympian Mellisa Hoskins.
Highlights
- Rohan Dennis has pleaded guilty to a charge with a maximum sentence of seven years and a suspension of driving license for five years.
- Dennis married a track and road racing cyclist, Melissa Hoskins, in 2018.
- Melissa and Dennis had one son in 2018 and one daughter in 2021.
Dennis will not be held responsible for Hoskins’ d*ath but has pleaded guilty to a charge that carries a maximum penalty of seven years of prison and a five-year license suspension.
He has been committed to the District Court for sentencing.
Rohan appeared in the Adelaide magistrates court on Tuesday, December 10, 2024, to answer charges of dangerous driving causing tragic d*ath and an aggravated charge of driving without due care.
Rohan was arrested after Hoskins, 32, was struck by his vehicle in front of their home at Medindie, in Adelaide’s inner north, on 30 December 2023.
Jane Abbey, an advocate for Dennis, told the court that the defense and prosecutors had agreed to drop the original charges and lay an aggravated charge of creating a likelihood of harm instead.
She told the magistrate, Justin Wickens,
What is agreed that will happen today is that there will be a plea to count three … the original charges will be dropped,”
Jane Abbey
Abbey said the new charge was “based on recklessness.” She said,
“So there was no intention of Mr Dennis to harm his wife and this charge does not charge him with any responsibility for her death,”
Jane Abbey
Wickens told the court that Dennis had been driving when his wife was on or near his vehicle, knowing it was likely to cause harm or recklessly indifferent to whether harm was caused.
It was an aggravated offense because they were in a relationship. The incident carries a maximum sentence of seven years in jail and a five-year loss of driving license.
Dennis, who pleaded guilty to the charge, was released on continuing bail and was due to appear in the district court for sentencing on January 24, 2024.
Hoskins suffered serious injuries in the crash and died in the Royal Adelaide Hospital.
She was laid to rest in her home city of Perth, and a public memorial service was held in Adelaide in February 2024.
Rohan Dennis’ Wife, Melissa Hoskins, Was An Australian Track And Road Racing Cyclist
Rohan Dennis married Melissa Hoskins in February 2018. They were a golden couple of Australian cycling.
Melissa Hopkins was born on February 24, 1991, in Kalamunda, a Perth, Western Australia suburb. She attended Walliston Primary School before high school at Carmel Adventist College.
Later, from 2010 to 2012, Ms Hoskins enrolled but did not complete a Bachelor of Sports Science at Murdoch University and was a member of the Elite Athlete Program.
During the London Olympics 2012, Ms Hoskins and Mr Dennis became trackside sweethearts.
As a track cyclist, Hoskins specialized in endurance events. She started track cycling when she was fifteen, following participation at a Western Australian Institute of Sport talent identification event.
She topped the general classification in the 2012 Tour of Chongming Island and was a member of the Australian track cycling team pursuit team that finished 4th place at the 2012 Summer Olympics.
Hoskins also competed in road races and started racing professionally with the GreenEDGE-AIS team in 2012, specializing in sprint finishes on the flat.
She faced injury while training at the Rio Olympic Velodrome. Although Hoskins avoided significant injury, she was on crutches until the eve of the qualifying round.
Melissa rode in qualification and first final round proper but was dropped for the final of the 2016 Olympics, where Australia secured fifth overall.
Hoskins announced her retirement from professional cycling on May 2, 2017.
Rohan and Melissa had a son in late 2018 and a daughter in 2021. They recently settled into their Adelaide colonial mansion, which they had purchased in 2019 but rented out for a few years.
The family spent the last few years alternating between Australia, Spain, and Andorra, where Dennis competed in several professional teams in cycling grand tours around Europe.
Additional Information
- Rohan Dennis has an estimated net worth of around $2 million as of 2024.
- Dennis was born to his father, Brenton Dennis, and his mother, Debbie Dennis.
- Having been a member of the Australian team pursuit squad that won consecutive world titles at the UCI Track Cycling World Championships in 2010 and 2011, Dennis transitioned to road racing in 2013.
