Former professional cyclist Rohan Dennis faces a prison sentence after pleading guilty to driving whilst disqualified, a ban imposed following the crash which caused the death of his wife, fellow pro rider and world champion Melissa Hoskins.
On 11 June, Dennis was stopped by police after officers observed him driving a vehicle with two children as passengers. The vehicle was impounded for 28 days and Dennis was summoned to appear in court this week.
In 2025, Dennis was handed a 17-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, and banned from driving for five years in relation to the incident which led to Hoskins’ death.
Hoskins, 32, was killed on New Year’s Eve 2023 after being struck by a vehicle driven by Dennis outside the couple’s home in Adelaide. Dennis pleaded guilty to a charge of committing an aggravated act likely to cause harm.
Prosecutors later withdrew charges of dangerous driving causing death and aggravated driving without due care.
During sentencing, the court heard that Dennis was not held criminally responsible for Hoskins’ death. Her family acknowledged that he remains responsible for caring for the couple’s two children and said they wished to continue playing an important role in their lives.
At the time of his sentencing in May 2025, Dennis agreed to a $100, two-year good behaviour bond and the suspension of his driving licence for five years. Judge Ian Press warned the former professional cyclist that any violation of his disqualification would constitute a breach of the bond, and lead to a spell in jail.
On Friday, Dennis pleaded guilty to driving whilst disqualified in Adelaide magistrates’ court. He will also appear in the district court on 1 September for breaching his good behaviour bond.
Dennis, a two-time world time trial champion, won stages at all three grand tours before retiring from professional cycling in 2023.
Hoskins was a world champion in the team pursuit and represented Australia on the track before leaving the sport in May 2017. The couple married in 2018 and had two children.
In March, Dennis came in for criticism after describing a car on Instagram as “an absolute weapon” in his first post on social media since the sentencing.
Following the criticism, Dennis accused the media of pursuing a “false narrative” around him, insisting that the incident which led to Hoskins’ death was “an accident”.
“I loved Melissa and the last thing I ever wanted was to hurt her,” the 36-year-old wrote. “Never in my life has any physical aggression crossed my mind in any disagreement with Melissa.
“The narrative which the media ran with was clear, they wanted me to look like the husband who abused his wife. I have always been against any sort of abuse against women and especially the one who gave birth to my children.”
