In 2017 Olympic swimmer Ian Thorpe came to Canberra to champion the cause of marriage equality before the historic parliamentary vote.

Just over two years later, he is back in Canberra on a very different mission. This time, he wants to stop a vote.

Olympic champion Ian Thorpe is urging the Morrison government to scrap its religious discrimination bill. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

The Olympic gold medallist visited MPs from across Parliament on Thursday, urging them to scrap proposed religious discrimination laws because, he says, it will have a "huge impact on the LGBTIQ community in particular".

"I believe in an Australia that has a sense of a fair go," he said on Thursday.