Austria in a tense playoffs, thanks to the jury, beat Israel

After a tense final, the winner of 69. The Eurovision in Basel is an Austrian representative JJ with a lyric ballad Wasted Love (Wasted love). He got 436 points. For the third year in a row, the crystal microphone has won a song that was not the first choice of viewers but professional juries. In second place, thanks to televoting, Israel (357 points) was ranked, third with a point less Estonia. The first five was rounded off by Sweden, which was seen by bookmakers as a clear winner, and Italy with 256 points.

For the third year in a row, the first one was not the final winner. After half the vote, when 37 national countries awarded its points, Austria (258 points) was in the lead, ahead of the host Switzerland, France and Italy. Israel was only 60 points in 15. The giant jump to the start of the rankings is the Jewish state, which many are convinced that, like Russia at Eurovision, it should not participate, with 297 points of the audience. At the end of the vote, only Israeli performer remained in the fight for victory Juval Rafael and jj. The Austrian has devoted televoting to more than a hundred points, which he needed to win the crystal microphone. At the same time, there was a considerable relief at the Basel news center.

Austria was considered the second favorite of the competition. Bookmakers ranked the first place with a Swedish comic three with Odo Sauna and Nordic countries Bara Bada Basto (We go to the sauna), which ended up in fourth place (321 points).

This is the third victory for our northern neighbors, who has been involved in the most watched non -sports television event since 1957. JJ, whose real name is Johannes Pietsch, is the third Austrian who convinced Europe and its hinterland. Before that has succeeded Udu jürgensu by Merci, Chérie in 1966 and Conchiti wurstwhich is in 2014 with Rise Like A Phoenix provided one of the most countless Eurovision triumphs.

Twenty-four-year-old Pietsch comes from an Austrian-Philippine family. He spent much of his life in Dubai, looking for space in the music industry in various talent shows, including appearing in the British version The voice. Pietsch’s musical style combines opera and pop, which is also reflected in songs Wasted Lovewhich in some places is reminiscent of last year’s Swiss winning song The Code.

In a short interview for Work said JJ a long time ago that the main message of the poem was hope. « Whatever happens, at last, there is always a light at the end of the tunnel and everything will work out, » he pointed out.

Return Céline Dion

As one of the highlights of the final evening in Basel, he also announced a performance Céline dionwhich in 1988 is Switzerland with No Partez Pas Sans moi earned another Eurovision victory. The question of whether a Canadian star who is dealing with a vicious neurological disease will appear on the stage of the Hall of St. Jakobshalle, the media and the public employed the entire Eurovision season. After numerous guesses and the hope of fans, the organizers managed to maintain tension until the last, but Céline Dion did not appear, the rest in her video from the first semifinals.

From Switzerland, who tested herself for the third time in the role of the host, the Eurovision caravan moves to Austria again, where it last in 2015 in Vienna.