What is a ute? What happened to Melissa Hoskins explained, as cyclist champ Rohan Dennis is charged with killing his wife

Melissa Hoskins died at the age of 32. (Image via X/AUSOlympicTeam/RonniSalt)
Melissa Hoskins died at the age of 32. (Image via X/AUSOlympicTeam/RonniSalt)

On December 30, 2023, two-time Olympian cyclist Melissa Hoskins died at the age of 32. According to The Guardian, she was hit by a ute in the inner north suburbs of Adelaide and succumbed to severe injuries. After her accident, Melissa Hoskins was rushed to the Royal Adelaide Hospital by first responders. However, she passed away overnight.

A ute is a small family car similar to the pick-up truck, used for carrying both passengers and goods. Daily Mail claimed that the one that killed Hoskins belonged to her and her husband.

The Guardian also reported that her husband and fellow Olympian cyclist Rohan Dennis has been allegedly charged with her death and was presumably identified as the 33-year-old male driver of the ute. The arrest was done on the counts of dangerous driving, driving without due care, and endangering life.


All you need to know about ute, the vehicle that killed Melissa Hoskins

According to the Oxford Dictionary, a ute is a small two-door utility vehicle often used as a family car in Australia and New Zealand. It has a unibody construction and an inbuilt open tray area to carry cargo at the back, similar but not identical to a pick-up truck.

According to Aussie Carloans, utes were first developed by the car manufacturer Ford in the 1930s, after the company got a letter from a Victoria-based farmer’s wife to make a vehicle that would allow her to attend Sunday church without getting wet, while also helping her husband transport pigs to the market over the week.

Ford designer Lew Brandt loved the idea and designed the first ‘coupe utility’ or ute, which hit the market in 1932. It was a four-door sedan with a “tub bodywork and a reinforced chassis” used to carry goods, as per Ridgeback.

By the 1950s, the idea became popular globally and it was around this time that Holden produced the modern-day two-door vehicle with a driver’s and passenger’s seat in the front and a rear tray.

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Exploring, in brief, the circumstances behind Melissa Hoskins’ demise

Australian track and road racing cyclist and Olympian Melissa Hoskins passed away on Saturday in Medindie, Adelaide. She was hit by a ute, a few meters from her Adelaide home, around 8 pm. The driver was a 33-year-old man, reportedly identified as her cyclist husband Rohan Dennis.

While he was initially taken into police custody, the world champion who has been charged with the murder of his wife later made bail. Rohan Dennis is reportedly scheduled to appear before Adelaide Magistrates Court on March 13, 2023.

The mother of two sustained serious wounds and was rushed to a nearby hospital where she died overnight. Currently, the investigation is ongoing and more details surrounding the death are expected to come to light soon.

Melissa Hoskins and Rohan Dennis got engaged in 2017 and tied the knot in Perth in 2018. They share two kids, a five-year-old son, and a younger daughter. As per ABC News, the couple was due to lead a family cycling event at the Santos Tour Down Under this month.

Edited by Rhythm Bhatia
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