Olympic cyclist Rohan Dennis to be sentenced in court for driving recklessly before Melissa Hoskins’ death

Olympic cyclist Rohan Dennis will learn his fate in court today for driving recklessly before the death of his wife and fellow Olympian Melissa Hoskins. His punishment will bring to a close a dramatic 18-month legal process that has rocked Australian sport, with Dennis facing a maximum penalty of seven years in prison his actions. A blow-up over a kitchen renovation sparked the tragedy, with Dennis and Ms Hoskins arguing over costs on the evening of December 30, 2023 at their leafy Medindie home in Adelaide’s inner-north. Dennis left to get away from the exchange and took the family’s Volkswagen Amarok from the garage, driving off into the night. But Ms Hoskins did not want him to leave and in tragic scenes, she jumped onto the bonnet of the car as Dennis drove down Medindie Lane, behind their home, going at about 20km/hr. When Dennis pulled into Avenel Gardens Road, Ms Hoskins dismounted the bonnet and grabbed at the driver’s side door. As Dennis accelerated away from the intersection, Ms Hoskins held onto the driver’s side door handle, the prosecution’s factual summary, tendered to the court and seen by NewsWire, states. She tripped and was dragged under the vehicle as Dennis drove down Avenel Gardens Road. When Dennis heard a “thump”, he stopped the car and ran to help her. Ms Hoskins suffered critical injuries and later died at Royal Adelaide Hospital. Dennis is not being held responsible for Ms Hoskins’ death. The breakdown happened in seconds. CCTV footage recorded Ms Hoskins on the bonnet of the car for about six seconds. The time between Ms Hoskins dismounting the vehicle and Dennis closing the driver’s side door and accelerating away from her was three seconds, the factual summary states, and the time between Dennis closing the door and Ms Hoskins falling under the wheel was about two seconds. In a police interview, recorded just hours after the crash, Dennis said his wife was still alive and struggling to breathe in the aftermath of the accident. “I rolled her onto her side ‘cos she seemed to be choking on something and I thought it might have been blood, and it was,” Dennis said. “And then they gave – the neighbours they just gave me sort of a, a rug to sort of hold her head. “I was holding that to try and stop any sort of bleeding. And just talking to her the whole time to try keep her awake.” Ms Hoskins’ death sent shockwaves through Australia’s sporting community. She competed in the London and Rio Olympics in track cycling, only just missing out on a medal in London after finishing fourth in the 3000m team pursuit category. In Rio, she finished fifth in the 4000m team pursuit. Dennis snatched a bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics. In April, Ms Hoskins’ family confronted Dennis in court as he sat in the dock, relaying their pain and grief in an emotional hearing. Ms Hoskins’ father Peter broke down when he spoke about the impact the tragic event would have on the couple’s two children, who he called the family’s “silent grievers”. “The silent grievers too young to realise the present and future impact of their mother’s loss on their lives,” he said. Sister Jessica said the family had not received an apology from Dennis for his actions. “No remorse has been shown,” she said. Peter said an “apology and some sort of explanation” from Dennis would help his family with their grieving process. Ms Hoskins’ mother Amanda said she believed the event was a “tragic accident”. “I know that you would never intentionally hurt her,” she said. Jane Abbey KC, for Dennis, said her client was “in love” with Ms Hoskins at the time of her death. “He loved her as his best friend, as his partner and as the mother to his children,” she said. Dennis has admitted to driving a motor vehicle without lawful excuse while Ms Hoskins was on or in proximity to the vehicle, knowing that act was likely to cause harm to another and being recklessly indifferent to whether such harm was caused. Judge Ian Press will sentence Dennis in the morning.