The sacrifices they have made to do this country proud. Working all day then training 20-hours plus a week to chase their dreams.  It is just an amazing effort just to get there in the first place. To win a gold medal everything has to line up.

In my eyes they are all champions and we should celebrate what they achieved.

Glenn Maxwell  Qld and NSW State Masters champion

We must never forget that we picked the very best athletes we had to compete in Rio. In another four years time we will do the same again. Every four years we send our politicians off to parliament, though they never get any sort of medal for their performance.

We know that the athletes will do their very best. We know that the politicians don't know how to. We get our best Australian teamwork overseas, sadly never in Australia.

Dave Cox, Tarrawanna

Wow what fantastic news. NSW has banned Greyhound racing/abuse.

Now for the rest of the states to follow suit. Congratulations to Mike Baird for having a spine.

Jill Larsen, Collingwood Park

I sincerely doubt Bill Shorten would be overly concerned should he ever be made aware of the inane questions posed in the contribution “What is the concern on plebiscite?” (Illawarra Mercury, Tuesday August 23).

As parliamentary leader of the Labor Party Mr. Shorten in calling for a parliamentary debate on marriage equality, rather than an expensive and ineffectual plebiscite, is quite possibly reflecting the opinion of the majority of Australians.

The plebiscite on marriage equality, was contrived by then Prime Minister Tony Abbott in a desperate attempt to avoid bringing on a debate in the Australian parliament. 

This act of political cowardice on Abbott’s part will cost the nation almost $200 million and achieve absolutely nothing in terms of legislative standing.

Like it or not, Malcolm Turnbull and his “camp followers” will eventually be forced to “come out” publicly on the question of marriage equality in front of  the Australian Parliament.

For it is only there legislation on marriage equality can be finally resolved.

Barry Swan, Balgownie

Father Brendan Lee’s midweek musing (Illawarra Mercury, August 24, P 18), has given me food for thought regarding the extent to which “believers” should look to their God for help in achieving their aims, as opposed to relying on their own efforts, without asking for divine assistance.

He used as an example Usain Bolt who blessed himself prior to winning more gold medals in Rio recently.

This dilemma in which mere mortals find themselves must fade into insignificance however, when compared to those faced by God himself (herself?), when say every competitor in a field of sprinters has crossed himself and asked for help? What’s a poor God to do?

To make matters even worse, there’s all those other decisions that God has to make in response to a great variety of requests seeking help from people all over the world on a variety of matters.

For instance I watched a documentary recently on the war in Yemen, where a badly injured child asked, “Will I live?” to which the answer was “God willing.”

I hope He was. It certainly makes one think.

John Martin, Woonona