The table below shows the number of medals won by the top ten countries in the 2016 Rio Olympic Games.
Sample Response
The table enlists the top ten countries in the Rio Olympic Games 2016 and shows how many medals these countries won in the competition. As can be seen, the United States held the top position by winning 121 medals among which 46 were gold medals. As the illustration outlines, the US won 121 trophies in the 2016 Rio Olympic Games and this number was almost double than the reward attained by the second-best team, the UK. American athletes achieved 45 gold, 37 silver and 38 bronze medals while these numbers were 27, 23 and 17 respectively for the UK. Despite winning 3 more medals than the Great Britain, China attained the third position as their gold and silver medal winning competitors were fewer than that of the Great Britain. Russia, Germany, Japan and France consecutively help 4th till 7th position and their total medal were between 40 to 56. Russia and Germany gained 19 and 17 gold medals while Japan and France secured 12 and 10 of them. The last three countries on this list are Korea, Italy and Australia with less than 30 medals among which 8-9 were gold medals. The number of medals won by Australia was 29, one higher than that of Italy but 12 silver medals pushed Italy higher on the list. It is interesting to note that the top three countries in this list cumulatively won more medals than the rest of the countries did in this tournament.
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Use precise verb Original: enlists Suggested revision: lists Why it matters: “Lists” is the natural verb for presenting countries in a table.
- 2. Fix date order Original: Rio Olympic Games 2016 Suggested revision: 2016 Rio Olympic Games Why it matters: Place the year before the event name in this noun phrase.
- 3. Fix relative phrase Original: 121 medals among which Suggested revision: 121 medals, of which Why it matters: Use a comma and “of which” to introduce a subset of the total.
- 4. Use chart term Original: trophies Suggested revision: medals Why it matters: The table counts medals, not trophies.
- 5. Fix comparison form Original: almost double than Suggested revision: almost twice Why it matters: Use “twice” without “than” for this multiplicative comparison.
- 6. Clarify medal total Original: reward attained Suggested revision: medal total achieved Why it matters: This phrase accurately names the quantity being compared.
- 7. Correct gold count Original: 45 Suggested revision: 46 Why it matters: The table shows 46 gold medals for the United States.
- 8. Correct verb phrase Original: consecutively help Suggested revision: respectively held Why it matters: The countries occupied the listed ranks respectively, and the verb should be in the past tense.
- 9. Fix rank range Original: 4th till 7th position Suggested revision: fourth to seventh positions Why it matters: A range covering several ranks requires plural “positions” and the form “from/to” or “fourth to seventh.”
- 10. Fix noun agreement Original: their total medal were Suggested revision: their medal totals were Why it matters: Use the plural noun phrase “medal totals” with “were.”
- 11. Fix range pairing Original: to Suggested revision: and Why it matters: The preposition “between” must pair with “and.”
- 12. Match country label Original: Korea Suggested revision: the Republic of Korea Why it matters: Use the country name displayed in the table.
Suggested Rewrites
- enlists lists
- Rio Olympic Games 2016 2016 Rio Olympic Games
- 121 medals among which 121 medals, of which
- trophies medals
- almost double than almost twice
- reward attained medal total achieved
Why this response received Band 6.5
The response is strongest in its broad coverage of the ranking, with useful comparisons across the leading, middle, and lower-performing countries and generally clear progression. Its main limitation is factual precision: the United States' gold-medal figure changes from 46 to 45, and the top three actually won one fewer medal than the other seven combined. Prioritise checking every figure and calculated comparison against the table before finalising the overview.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Detailed feedback by IELTS writing criterion after the annotated essay.
Task Achievement
The response identifies the main ranking pattern and covers most countries with relevant comparisons, but two conspicuous numerical claims are inaccurate.
Verify the United States' 46 gold medals and replace the incorrect top-three aggregate claim with an accurate overall comparison.
Coherence and Cohesion
Information progresses logically from the highest-ranked countries to the lowest, although the single long paragraph weakens structural clarity.
Separate the overview from two detail paragraphs grouping the leading nations and the remaining countries.
Lexical Resource
A reasonably varied vocabulary describes ranks and medal totals, but choices such as "trophies," "reward," and "medal winning competitors" are imprecise or awkward.
Use exact table-reporting terms such as medals, totals, rankings, and gold-medal counts throughout.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
The response uses varied sentence structures, but recurring agreement, article, preposition, and comparison errors reduce control.
Correct forms such as "almost double," "Great Britain," and "totals ranged from 40 to 56," while checking subject-verb agreement.
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IELTS Academic Writing Task 1
The table below shows the number of medals won by the top ten countries in the 2016 Rio Olympic Games.
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.