Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 21 · 2026-10-20

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 5.5)

I think international sport events are a really good way to bring countries together. But people have different view on this; some consider this as a good way to foster friendship among countries and others say that, it will create more competition between the countries. In some words, both are right. When a competition is happening in a country, like an olympics or football or a cricket match. Everyone will gather there from every nook and corners of the world just to enjoy the match. Of course, there will be competitive spirit and tension in each and every individual there. They will be cheering to one specific team or the player.

I am a very huge fan of Argentina team and Messi is my facorite player. I always cheer for him and the team, and if the team loose the game, I would in serious trauma. Meanwhile my friends roots for Brazil. Sometimes, we fought over those personal opinions, but at the end of the day we all love the game, more than anything. I also admire other teams and players as well, because they all are working towards the same goal. I always think about their hardwork and discipline that took them to the international level. This is the same with all the teams playing there and between the team there would be rivalry, but I think more than that they know how to handle the pressure of the game and maintain the friendship.

I would like to spot one incident that was on the news headlines during the recent olympics game that caught my attention; eventough Japan loose the game but the players stayed after the game to clean up the stadium. It makes me feel like its not always about the game, beyond that there is some values that we need to stick on to.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You address both views and make your own position clear from the opening: international sports events are, in your view, a good way to bring countries together. The Argentina–Brazil example supports the idea that rivalry can coexist with shared enjoyment, and the story about Japan’s players cleaning the stadium illustrates values beyond winning. However, the opposing view is acknowledged more than explained: competition and tension are mentioned, but the response does not develop how these might damage relations between countries. Some points, such as the personal impact of a team losing, are also more about individual fans than relations between nations. Develop both sides more evenly and connect each example explicitly to the question of friendship between countries.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a recognisable overall structure: an introduction, a paragraph using your football experience, and a final example followed by a concluding thought. This helps the reader follow the main position. However, progression is sometimes loose: the first body paragraph moves from crowds to individual tension, while the next shifts quickly from your personal fandom to teams’ discipline and international friendship. Linking phrases such as “Meanwhile” and “At the end of the day” help, but some connections are unclear or mechanical, and the final paragraph does not fully draw together the two views discussed. Use topic sentences to signal each paragraph’s purpose, and make the relationship between examples and your argument more explicit.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a range of relevant vocabulary, including “foster friendship,” “competitive spirit,” “rivalry,” “discipline,” and “maintain the friendship.” These choices communicate the topic and show attempts to use more specific language. However, several expressions are imprecise or unnatural, such as “in serious trauma,” “spot one incident,” and “some values that we need to stick on to.” There are also spelling and word-form slips, including “facorite,” “eventough,” and “hardwork,” which reduce accuracy. Aim for natural collocations and a more formal register, especially when presenting examples. For instance, describe the emotional effect of a loss directly and introduce the news story with a conventional phrase such as “one incident that caught my attention.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt a mixture of simple and more complex sentences, including conditional forms such as “if the team loose the game” and clauses introduced by “because” and “that.” The main ideas remain understandable, but errors in verb forms, agreement, articles, and sentence boundaries are noticeable. Examples include “people have different view,” “Everyone will gather there,” and “Japan loose the game”; the opening fragment beginning “When a competition is happening” also needs to be joined to a complete main clause. Punctuation around “others say that” is awkward, and some sentences run together. Review subject–verb agreement and past-tense forms, and check that each sentence has a complete clause. More accurate control of these structures would make your argument easier to read.

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