Netherlands triumphs in Eurovision
Country wins for the first time in 44 years amid Madonna uproar
TEL AVIV: The Netherlands won the 2019 Eurovision Song Contest at a show in the seaside Israeli city of Tel Aviv that featured a performance from Madonna, plenty of glitz and some controversy.
The glamorous and famously kitschy finale on Saturday night gave Israel a chance to showcase its credentials as a culturally progressive nation, but politics lurked in the background as pro-Palestinian activists called for a boycott.
The extravaganza passed off largely politics-free, though two incidents temporarily drew attention away from the songs and toward Israel’s conflict with the Palestinians.
Local media showed images of two of Madonna’s dancers side by side with Israeli and Palestinian flags on their backs during her performance in an apparent call for unity.
Icelandic group Hatari, meanwhile, displayed scarfs with Palestinian flags when results were being announced.
The European Broadcasting Union, which organises the event, condemned both displays.
Referring to Madonna’s dancers, it said: “This element of the performance was not part of the rehearsals. The Eurovision Song Contest is a non-political event and Madonna had been made aware of this.”
Israel won the right to host the extravaganza thanks to last year’s victory by Israeli singer Netta Barzilai, who opened the show at a Tel Aviv concert hall.
After performances by all 26 finalists, Duncan Laurence of the Netherlands took the prize with the stirring power ballad Arcade.
The largely European competition, which gifted the Swedish supergroup ABBA to the world, dates back to the 1950s. The show lures in millions of viewers every year. Laurence, 25, ended a 44-year drought for the Netherlands in the competition. Italy finished second and Russia third in the results, which combined votes from juries from participating countries and viewers at home.
Madonna stole much of the limelight with her two-song performance, including her 1989 hit Like A Prayer