Eurovision Song Contest Final
Organizers forbid Zelenskyj’s greeting
Volodymyr Zelenskyj wanted to send a greeting to the audience at the ESC final.
© imago images/photothek
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyj wanted to address the audience in a greeting at the ESC final. The organizers refuse.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (45) will not speak at the final of this year’s Eurovision Song Contest next Saturday. This was shared by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which organizes the ESC, on Thursday with
Accordingly, Selenskyj’s request to address a greeting to the audience via video could not be complied with “since this would violate the rules of the event,” the statement said. The ESC is an international entertainment show with strict rules, one of which is “the non-political character of the event”. “This principle prohibits the possibility of making political or similar statements in the context of the competition,” said the EBU. Selenskyj’s wish was nevertheless expressed with “commendable intentions”.
Although the Ukrainian band Kalush Orchestra won the ESC last year, the 2023 competition will be held in Liverpool due to the ongoing war in Ukraine. At the finale, the country of last year’s winner should still be honored. “No fewer than eleven Ukrainian artists, including last year’s winner Kalush Orchestra, will perform […].” Several short films will also feature different regions of the country.
Second semi-final: These acts are through
The second ESC semi-final took place on May 11th. After voting and counting, it was clear: Albania, Cyprus, Estonia, Belgium, Austria, Lithuania, Poland, Australia, Armenia and Slovenia will reach the final on Saturday. They are joined by Croatia, Moldova, Switzerland, Finland, Czech Republic, Israel, Portugal, Sweden, Serbia and Norway from the first semi-final. In addition, Germany, France, Great Britain, Italy and Spain are automatically represented as the “Big Five” – just like last year’s winner Ukraine.
Das Erste, ONE and eurovision.de will show “ESC – Der Countdown” with Barbara Schöneberger (49) on May 13 from 8:15 p.m. The live broadcast of the music event from Liverpool follows at 9 p.m.