Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-09-21
IELTS Writing Task 2 question
Some people believe that international sports events, such as The Olympics or the Football World Cup, are a good way to bring countries together. Others say that these events create competition, not friendship, between countries.
Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Student answer (Band 6.5)
It is undoubtedly a matter of debate that many people considers The Olympics or The Football World Cup build friendship between the countries while others believe such platforms only bring competition. I firmly believe that both the view points are integral for the overall development of the country.
The most significant reason that why some people consider sports events as a mean of building friendship between the countries is their capability to dissolve the conflicts. Let us take the example of unhealthy relationship between the India and the Pakistan for instance which is deeply rooted in natives of both the countries, but during the cricket match the two teams can be seen together without any negativity as well as with high enthusiasm from both sides audience.
Another reason why some people consider the sports events as a part of building good relation between the nations is the cultural exploration and tourism. Good bond with other teams, and chance of playing in different countries help to exchange the culture alongwith inflation in tourism. For instance, sports lover are always eager to visit other countries to watch the events live. In addition to, after the event they explore the country to adds up their tourism which ultimately benefits the countrys' economy.
On the other side, some people consider international sports events merely as a part of competition between the teams because it is an ethic of sportsmanship to consider the against team as a biggest rivalry. For example, a team can only win with a competitive mindset so all the team members whether playing national or international games always comes in front of opposition as a target to win.
Moreover, such games could bring national conflicts on field. To exemplify, it is noted that 60% of the injured and casuality cases between the audience of games belongs to the hatered they carry in their hearts for the other country.
To conclude, I strongly believe that sports events can build friendhip, and competition both between the teams as well as audience particularly if teams perform clean on the field.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 6.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 6.0 |
| Overall | 6.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5
The response addresses all parts of the prompt by discussing both views—that international sports events build friendship and that they create competition—and provides a clear personal opinion in the introduction and conclusion. Ideas are reasonably well-developed with examples such as India-Pakistan cricket matches and the impact on tourism. However, some arguments, such as the statistical claim regarding fan injuries, are slightly unsupported or overly generalised. The position is maintained throughout, satisfying the requirements for a Band 6.5 or 7.0 response. To push into higher bands, ensure all examples are logical, realistic, and fully unpacked to support the main thesis.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5
The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, with a clear introduction, body paragraphs addressing each viewpoint, and a conclusion. Cohesive devices are used to guide the reader, such as 'The most significant reason', 'Another reason', and 'On the other side'. However, paragraphing and referencing occasionally feel a bit mechanical, and some transitions like 'In addition to, after the event' are grammatically awkward. Overall progression is clear, though logical relationships between sentences could be smoothed out for better flow.
Lexical Resource — Band 6.0
The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting some less common collocations and phrases such as 'dissolve the conflicts', 'cultural exploration', and 'competitive mindset'. However, there are noticeable lexical and word-form errors throughout the text, including 'considers' instead of 'consider', 'a mean' instead of 'a means', 'inflation in tourism' instead of 'boost in tourism', and 'countrys' economy'. While these errors do not impede communication, they reflect a Band 6 level where precision in word choice and spelling is inconsistent.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0
The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures with varying degrees of success. There are several grammatical errors and awkward phrasings, such as 'many people considers', 'relationship between the India and the Pakistan', 'sports lover are always eager', and 'hatered' (spelling error). Complex structures are sometimes faulty, particularly regarding subject-verb agreement and article usage. While error-free sentences do appear, the frequency of basic slips places this response firmly in the Band 6 category.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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