Rohan Dennis social media post of Porsche criticised as ‘offensive’ after wife Melissa Hoskins fatally struck by car | South Australia

Olympic cyclist Rohan Dennis, who was given a 17-month suspended prison sentence after his car fatally hit his wife 10 months ago, returned to social media with a post describing the Porsche as “an absolute weapon”.

Melissa Hoskins, a world-famous Olympic cyclist, died in December 2023 after being struck by a car driven by her husband near their home in Medindie, in Adelaide’s inner north.

Dennis pleaded guilty to committing an aggravated act likely to cause harm, but was not held criminally responsible for his wife’s death.

He hadn’t posted on social media since shortly before the accident, but he came back with a photo of a bike frame on Tuesday. On Wednesday evening, Dennis shared a photo of a black Porsche with the caption: “What an amazing gun.”

The Instagram post and story, accompanied by CID and Taylr Renee’s song Fancy $hit, sparked some criticism on social media.

South Australia’s victims’ rights commissioner, Sarah Quick, described the post as “deeply offensive” and said it showed “a clear lack of understanding of the true and lasting impact of the harm it causes”.

“This also reflects a profound lack of respect for Melissa and her family,” Quick said in a statement.

At sentencing last May, Dennis agreed to a two-year, $100 good behavior bond. His driver’s license was confiscated for 5 years.

On Thursday morning, Dennis posted a photo of his two children riding bikes. She captioned the photo: “Two absolute weapons” and a loving heart emoji.

Dennis had also shared a screenshot and phone number of a text voicemail from a journalist from the Adelaide Advertiser who approached him for comment on his social media: “Those rats didn’t last long.”

He also posted a video of reporters outside his home in Adelaide.

He appeared to have deleted his entire Instagram account later Thursday.

Judge Ian Press told Dennis in May last year: “I accept that you are responsible for everything that happened. I accept that you agonize over what might have been different if you had acted differently.”

Press said it was important to acknowledge that Dennis was not accused of causing his wife’s death. Hoskins had jumped on the hood of his car, not the Porsche.

The judge said driving at any speed with a person on the bonnet was “an inherently risky and dangerous act”.

According to the court, Hoskins opened the door after climbing out of the hood, while Dennis kept closing the door.

Press said, “While you were speeding down the street, your wife held on to the car without your knowledge. At that moment, she fell and died.”

He noted that Dennis’ “cool presentation doesn’t mean you don’t feel guilty about what happened.”

During his competitive career, Dennis won two world titles in the road time trial, as well as a silver medal in the team pursuit at the 2012 Olympics and a bronze medal in the Tokyo Olympics road time trial.

Hoskins competed in track in the team pursuit at the 2012 and 2016 Olympics and was on the squad that won the 2015 world championship.

Dennis has been contacted for comment.