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Participation in four sports: IELTS Task 1 answer #8, band 7.5

A student’s answer to this repeated IELTS question, shared without their name and marked by Axiom on the four criteria. Select a highlighted passage to see how it could be revised, and why.

216 words. Marked by Axiom on 30 October 2025. Estimated by AI. It isn’t an official IELTS score.

The line graph this answer describes

Participation in four sports (IELTS Task 1 line graph)Basketball, Tennis, Badminton, Rugby for 1985, 1990, 1995, 2000, 2005, in people. Values are approximate, read from the original chart.05010015020025019851990199520002005
Participation in four sports (IELTS Task 1 line graph)Basketball, Tennis, Badminton, Rugby for 1985, 1990, 1995, 2000, 2005, in people. Values are approximate, read from the original chart.05010015020025019851990199520002005
Values in people. Values approximate: read from the original chart, not printed on it.
Show the data
Participation in four sports (IELTS Task 1 line graph) (people)
BasketballTennisBadmintonRugby
19858015055240
19907817545210
19958220050200
20008321050150
2005802205050

Academic Task 1216 words

The graph below shows the number of people taking part in four different kinds of sports in a particular region between 1985 and 2005. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparison where relevant.

The line graph shows how many people participated in various kinds of sports—basketball, tennis, badminton, and rugby—in a particular place from 1985 to 2005. Overall, the number of people participating in tennis noticeably increased, while the reverse was true for rugby, Although rugby led the pack in the initial years, it was surpassed by tennis at the end.

  1. Coherence & cohesion

    Revisedwhile the figures for basketball and badminton remained constant.

    Using 'remained constant' instead of 'being unchanged' improves readability.

Rugby and tennis were the sports whose number of participants changed overall. In 1985, the figure for rugby stood at the chart high of 245, This figure fell dramatically to 50 in 2005, The number of participants in tennis, which only saw an increase among all sports, was 150. After converging with rugby in 1995, it increased to 230, the highest point in 2005,

  1. Grammar & accuracy

    Revisedwhich then declined slightly to 200 by 1995.

    Adjusting for more natural grammatical structure.

  2. Grammar & accuracy

    Revisedequaling the participation in badminton.

    Rephrasing to improve grammatical precision.

  3. Lexical resource

    Reviseddespite the slower growth rate towards the end of the period.

    Replacing 'lessened' with 'slower growth rate' clarifies the meaning.

In 1985, 70 people participated in basketball, which then stayed at its initial rate by 2005. The number of people taking part in badminton was just above 50, which was the lowest figure in 1985.

  1. Coherence & cohesion

    RevisedBasketball and badminton did not experience significant changes overall and followed a similar trend.

    Clarifying the subject of the sentence improves coherence.

  2. Lexical resource

    RevisedThis figure declined to 50 in 1990 before stabilizing by 2005.

    Reorganizing the sentence enhances clarity and readability.

Select a highlighted passage to see its suggested revision.

Estimated by AI. It isn’t an official IELTS score.

What Axiom wrote for each criterion: why the answer earned its band, and what to work on next.

Coherence & cohesion

Band 7.0/ 9

The essay is logically organized with clear comparisons, but some transitions could be smoother.

Suggestions

  • Use linking words to improve flow between sentences.
  • Ensure consistency in tense usage.
  • Clarify points of comparison for better readability.

Sentence revisions 3

  • RevisedOverall, the number of people participating in tennis increased noticeably.

    Switching the position of the adverb 'noticeably' improves sentence flow.

  • Revisedwhile the figures for basketball and badminton remained constant.

    Using 'remained constant' instead of 'being unchanged' improves readability.

  • RevisedBasketball and badminton did not experience significant changes overall and followed a similar trend.

    Clarifying the subject of the sentence improves coherence.

Grammar & accuracy

Band 8.0/ 9

The grammatical structures are varied and mostly accurate, although there are minor issues.

Sentence revisions 3

  • Revisedequaling the participation in badminton.

    Rephrasing to improve grammatical precision.

  • Revisedwhich then declined slightly to 200 by 1995.

    Adjusting for more natural grammatical structure.

  • RevisedIt converged with rugby in 1995, then increased to 230.

    Clarifying the sequence of events.

Lexical resource

Band 7.0/ 9

The vocabulary used is appropriate and varied, but lacks depth in some areas.

Sentence revisions 4

  • RevisedRugby was the most popular sport in the initial years.

    Using 'most popular' provides a clearer description.

  • Revisedexperienced a slight decline, reaching 200 in 1995.

    Adding 'reaching' provides clarity to the sentence.

  • Reviseddespite the slower growth rate towards the end of the period.

    Replacing 'lessened' with 'slower growth rate' clarifies the meaning.

  • RevisedThis figure declined to 50 in 1990 before stabilizing by 2005.

    Reorganizing the sentence enhances clarity and readability.

Task achievement

Band 8.0/ 9

The essay addresses all parts of the task with relevant data and comparisons.

Suggestions

  • Include specific data points for badminton and basketball.
  • Provide clearer trend statements for consistency.
  • Ensure all described trends are supported with data.

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