Former professional cyclist Rohan Dennis faces a jail sentence after admitting he drove while disqualified over the events leading up to the death of his Olympian wife, Melissa Hoskins.
- Melissa Hoskins, 32, was struck near their Medindie home on 30 December 2023 and died in the Royal Adelaide Hospital.
- On 11 June he drove while disqualified with two children aboard; car impounded 28 days; he pleaded guilty at the Adelaide Magistrates Court.
- In May 2025 he received a suspended 17-month term, five-year licence ban and a $100, two-year good behaviour bond; Judge Ian Press warned jail.
A judge had previously warned the former Olympian he would be jailed if he drove while banned.
In 2025, Dennis, 36, was given a suspended 17-month jail term and banned from driving for five years, after pleading guilty to a charge of committing an aggravated act likely to cause harm in relation to his wife’s death.
Hoskins, 32, was struck by her husband’s vehicle near their home at Medindie, in Adelaide’s inner north, on 30 December 2023.
She suffered serious injuries and died in the Royal Adelaide hospital.
On 11 June, the father-of-two was reported for driving while disqualified and his car was impounded for 28 days after police allegedly observed him driving with two children as passengers.
On Friday, Dennis pleaded guilty to the charge when in the Adelaide magistrates court.
He will also appear in the district court on 1 September, for breaching a good behaviour bond.
When he was sentenced in May 2025, Dennis had agreed to the $100, two-year good behaviour bond, and his driver’s licence was suspended for five years.
At the time, judge Ian Press warned him that any violation of the driving suspension would be a breach of the bond, and Dennis would be jailed.
After sentencing in May 2025, Hoskins’ father, Peter Hoskins said the family had not yet received an apology from Dennis, “but I’m sure that will come in time”.
“From the outset it (a jail term) wasn’t something we were pursuing.”
Hoskins competed at the 2012 and 2016 Olympics in the team pursuit and was in the squad that won the 2015 world title.
Dennis won two world titles in the road time trial, as well as silver in the team pursuit at the 2012 Olympics and bronze in the road time trial at the Tokyo Olympics.
In March, Dennis was criticised over an Instagram post in which he shared a photo of a black Porsche with the caption: “What an absolute weapon”.
South Australia’s Victims Rights commissioner, Sarah Quick, had said the post was “deeply offensive” and demonstrated “a clear lack of insight into the real and lasting impact of the harm he has caused”.
“It also reflects a profound lack of respect for Melissa and her family,” she said.
