AusCycling mourns the tragic death of Olympian and former world champion Melissa Dennis (nee Hoskins) on New Year's Eve.

"A mother, daughter, and wife, Melissa was also a champion cyclist who excited and inspired us all with her outstanding skills on the track and road.

"Melissa began her cycling career at only 16 years old and showed the world that she was an athlete of exceptional ability before retiring at age 25.

Hoskins won the world title as a member of Team Pursuit in 2015 and was dedicated to track, where she competed in two Olympic Games; she finished outside the medal standings in London 2012, but was on crutches in Rio 2016 after a fall in training Despite this, he jumped on his bike in both qualifying and the first round to try to keep his country in medal contention. Hoskins also competed in road races, winning the overall and two stages of the Tour of Chongming in 2012.

Hoskins, a mother of two and married to fellow cyclist Rohan Dennis in 2018, was reportedly hit by a car in Adelaide, Australia, on the night of December 30 and died of her injuries in hospital the following morning. Dennis was reportedly charged with dangerous driving manslaughter, careless driving, and endangering life.

Hoskins became a professional cyclist at the age of 15 when she was noticed by the Western Australian Sports Association's talent search program, and the Rio Olympics, where she finished fifth in the team pursuit, was the last race of her career. However, she delayed officially announcing her retirement until the following year, giving herself time to process the consequences of not living up to expectations before making that decision public.

"In the last few months I have gained a new understanding of how to define my career," she said upon announcing her retirement.

"A career shouldn't be defined by the medals I've won or the results I've collected. I choose to define my career by what I have accomplished as a person, the places I have been, the people I have met, and the standards by which I have performed my work. I achieved all the goals I wanted to achieve, both on and off the bike.

AusCycling also expressed that the sport was also better because Hoskins was a part of it, and not just for national or team results.

"Melissa said that the team pursuit gold medal at the 2015 UCI Track Cycling World Championships was the highlight of her career, but the highlight for us was just having her by our side," Fechner said, and as an alumna of the sport She added that her presence continues to be felt and appreciated even after she retires.

AusCycling said it "extends its deepest condolences to Melissa's family, friends, and former teammates and will determine an appropriate way to honor her and her contributions to our sport in the future."