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Rohan Dennis, an Olympic cyclist, has publicly urged the media to “back off” and accused journalists of promoting a “false narrative.” This marks his first public statement since his court appearance related to the tragic death of his wife.
Last year in May, Dennis, 35, received a suspended jail sentence following the unfortunate incident where his wife, Melissa Hoskins, 32, was fatally hit by his vehicle near their residence in Medindie, Adelaide, on December 30, 2023.
Recently, Dennis took to Instagram to address the intense media scrutiny surrounding him. He defended himself against criticisms related to a post about his Porsche and strongly asserted that he “loved Melissa” and was not an abuser.
“The last thing I ever wanted was to hurt her,” Dennis expressed in his heartfelt message.
He further emphasized, “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.”
Dennis said he and his family have been mistreated by the media in the wake of Hoskins’ death and the subsequent court case.
He said journalists had greeted him at the airport the day after Hoskins died and asked him inappropriate questions.
The ex-cyclist alleged reporters made “disgusting” remarks in front of his children and openly asked if he was a murderer.
“The media speak about the children and how saddened they are for the children,” Dennis continued.
“Yet they happily stalk, follow and harass not just adults in my family but even when the kids are involved.”
Dennis said his words had been “twisted” and that he never “intentionally or unintentionally used a vehicle as a weapon”.
“Never was it legally said that I did either,” he added.
“The video footage of the accident also proves this statement.”
He finished the statement with a final plea: “Time for all you so called [sic] journalists and media outlets to back off and leave my family alone.”
Victims’ Rights Commissioner Sarah Quick described Dennis’ post about his car last month as “deeply offensive”.
Dennis pleaded guilty to committing an aggravated act likely to cause harm, but was not held criminally responsible for his wife’s death.
He was given a 17-month suspended prison term with a two-year good behaviour bond and was suspended from driving for two years.
During sentencing submissions in the SA District Court last year, Hoskins’ mother Amanda said her daughter had loved Dennis and “and I know that you would never intentionally hurt her”.
“I believe this is a tragic accident. Your temper is your downfall and needs to be addressed,” she said.
During his competitive career, 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.
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National Sexual Assault, Domestic Family Violence Counselling Service 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732).