Academic Writing Task 1 · table

Medal count for the top ten nations at London 2012 Olympics

The table below shows the number of medals won by the top ten countries in the London 2012 Olympic Games.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant. Write at least 150 words.

London 2012 Olympic Games Medal Table

Rank by Gold	Country	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total
1	United States	46	29	29	104
2	China	38	27	23	88
3	Great Britain	29	17	19	65
4	Russia	24	26	32	82
5	South Korea	13	8	7	28
6	Germany	11	19	14	44
7	France	11	11	12	34
8	Italy	8	9	11	28
9	Hungary	8	4	5	17
10	Australia	7	16	12	35

Chart redrawn by BandLadder from the data in the original IELTS practice task. Many IELTS practice tasks come from the Cambridge IELTS series (Cambridge University Press & Assessment); all rights in the original tasks remain with their owners.

Band 8 sample answer

The table illustrates the medal distribution for the ten most successful nations at the London 2012 Olympic Games, ranked primarily by their gold medal count. Overall, the United States dominated the competition, achieving the highest figures in gold, silver, and total medals, whereas other nations showed varied performance across the different medal types.

The United States led the rankings with 46 gold medals and a total of 104, followed by China with 38 gold and 88 total medals. Great Britain occupied the third position with 29 gold medals, while Russia, despite ranking fourth by gold count (24), secured a higher total of 82 medals compared to Great Britain's 65. South Korea rounded out the top five with 13 gold medals.

In the lower half of the top ten, Germany and France both earned 11 gold medals, though Germany’s total of 44 significantly outperformed France’s 34. Italy and Hungary followed with 8 gold medals each. Notably, Australia, despite having the fewest gold medals among the top ten at 7, achieved a total of 35 medals, which was higher than the totals for both France and Italy.

185 words. Every figure in the answer comes from the chart above.

How to write about tables

Tables hide the trend: find the highest, lowest and biggest change yourself.
Select; do not list every cell.
Organise paragraphs by row or by column, whichever gives the clearer comparison.

dominated: exercised overwhelming control or influence over the competition
disparity: a great difference between two or more things
outperformed: performed better than another person or group
rounded out: completed a group or list of items
notably: in a way that is worthy of attention
distribution: the way in which something is shared among people

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Frequently asked questions

What should the overview say?

The United States secured the highest number of medals across all categories, while there was a notable disparity between gold medal counts and total medal tallies for several countries.

How long should an IELTS Task 1 answer be?

At least 150 words; 170 to 200 is the safe range. Spend about 20 minutes on it and leave 40 for Task 2, which carries twice the marks.

How do I describe tables?

Tables hide the trend: find the highest, lowest and biggest change yourself. Select; do not list every cell. Organise paragraphs by row or by column, whichever gives the clearer comparison.