Melissa Hoskins: Champion cyclist Rohan Dennis pleads guilty over fellow Olympian wife's car death

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A former world champion cyclist has admitted charges in connection to a car crash which killed his wife - a fellow Olympian.

Melissa Hoskins died in December last year, after being hit by a car driven by her husband Rohan Dennis.

Dennis was at first charged with dangerous driving causing death and driving without due care, but has admitted a lesser charge - one aggravated count of creating the likelihood of harm. The 34-year-old, who had two children with Hoskins, has not yet been sentenced.

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It is not clear what happened. Dennis's guilty plea means he has admitted to driving a car when Hoskins was nearby, knowing that act was likely to cause harm or being recklessly indifferent to whether it would.

Melissa Hoskins in 2012Melissa Hoskins in 2012
Melissa Hoskins in 2012 | Dino Panato/Getty Images

"There was no intention of Mr Dennis to harm his wife and this charge does not charge him with responsibility for her death," the athlete's lawyer told the court.

Hoskins was a world champion in the team pursuit in 2015 and a two-time Olympian; she was in the Australian track cycling team pursuit team that finished fourth at the 2012 London Olympics. Her death triggered a wave of tributes from around the world. She married Dennis in 2018.

Dennis retired in 2023, after a career which saw him crowned a multiple world champion on both road and track. He won the road time trial bronze at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, having won team pursuit silver at London 2012. He also won a gold medal at the Commonwealth Games in 2022. He also won stages of the Tour de France, Giro d'Italia and Vuelta a Espana during his career.

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