OVSC30

## OrbisVision Song Contest #30  *BE BOLD.*

 **Grand Final:** Sandra Kim performing her 1986 Eurovision winning song, "J'aime la vie"
 Blanche performing "City Lights" and "Empire"

## Participants

### Debuting

 Iraq
  Madagascar
  Saudi Arabia
  Somalia
  Tunisia

### Returning

 Andorra
  Chile
  Croatia
  France
  Guam
  India
  Ireland
  Liechtenstein
  Luxembourg
  North Korea
  Peru
  Portugal
  Serbia
  Uganda

### Withdrawing

 Azerbaijan
  China
  Eswatini
  Estonia
  Gibraltar
  Guernsey
  Hungary
  Indonesia
  Isle of Man
  Israel
  Malaysia
  Mexico
  Netherlands
  Russia
  São Tomé and Príncipe
 Slovakia
  Spain
  Taiwan
  Thailand

## Voting

### System

Each country awards a set of 1 - 7 points, followed by 8, 10 and 12 points for their top 3 favourite songs

### Winner

 United Kingdom
 "Antichrist" by Holly Humberstone

After their victory in Melbourne, the Belgian city of Antwerp hosted the 30th OrbisVision Song Contest for the first time ever!

This was Belgium's first time hosting, as well a record 15th time the contest has been to Europe. Notably, this was the first contest to be organised by two broadcasters, the Flemish-language VRT and the French-language RTBF.

The contest consisted of 3 shows, 2 semi-finals and a Grand Final.

44 countries have confirmed their participation.

The contest was won by the United Kingdom for the second time with the song "Antichrist" by Holly Humberstone, with her becoming the first artist to win OrbisVision twice. This was also the 14th time and 2nd time in a row that a European country has won the contest.

## Location

### Host city

Antwerp (**Anvers** in French, **Antwerpen** in Dutch) is a major destination in Belgium in the region of Flanders. It is renowned for being the "world's leading diamond city" and more than 70% of all diamonds are traded there.

The Diamond Market is the hub of the economic section in Belgium. More than 85% of the world’s rough diamonds, 50% of cut diamonds, and 40% of industrial diamonds are traded in the city.

    Antwerp is the second largest city of Belgium. It has a beautiful historic city center, and is world-renowned for its fashion industry.

The port of Antwerp is the second largest in Europe, and a major economic player in Belgium.

The name "Antwerp" is most likely derived from "aan de werpe", which is Dutch for "at the throw", referring to a place where the bending river throws its sand.

    Locals might tell you of an ancient urban legend, saying it comes from "Hand werpen", which translated is "throwing (a) hand(s)". In the official flag, the castle "het Steen" and the hand of Antwerp are shown.

In the 16th century, Antwerp was one of the most important financial centres of the world, where traders from all over Europe and Asia sold and bought their goods.

After the siege of Antwerp in 1585 by the Spanish, this role as a financial centre was taken over by Amsterdam.

Nevertheless, since the 19th century and especially the 20th century, Antwerp has made a serious economic comeback.

At a population of 506,225 (2012), it is the second largest city in Belgium, after Brussels, and it has a major European port.

Due to its long and culturally rich history, the city of Antwerp houses many interesting historical buildings from different historical periods, as well as a lot of interesting museums.

Recently it has become a trendy city, attracting a lot of Flemish and foreign artists, writers, intellectuals, and actors.

This is reflected in the city's many trendy bars and shops. Antwerp is a city with many faces.

While it may not be as historically preserved as other Flemish medieval cities, like Bruges or Ghent, it is a very dynamic city, offering a perfect mix of history and present-day modern life.

### Venue

The Antwerps Sportpaleis is an arena in Antwerp, Belgium. It is a multipurpose hall where concerts, sporting events, festivals and fairs are organized and can accommodate up to 18,575 spectators.

The arena was built for sport, especially track cycling, but there is now little sport there, an exception being the Diamond Games tennis. It opened on 11th September 1933.

According to Billboard Magazine, for the 2007/08 period, the Sportpaleis was the second most visited event hall in the world, second only to New York's Madison Square Garden.

The Sportpaleis is known for performances by both Dutch-speaking and international artists. It also hosts the Nekka-Nacht, the Proximus Diamond Games tennis tournament for women and Pop Poll De Luxe, organised by the magazine HUMO.

The main building is 132 by 88 metres (433 by 289 ft) and has a roof spanning 11,600 square metres (125,000 sq ft).

The arena is elliptical and has two floors. Until renovations in 2011, there was a 250-metre-long (270 yd) wooden cycling track under the stands.

Next to the Sportpaleis is its sister venue, the Lotto Arena, a hall that can accommodate 8,000 spectators.

## Participating countries

### Semi-final 1

Belgium, South Korea and Ukraine will vote in this semi-final. Qualifiers are marked in blue.

### Semi-final 2

The Vatican City, Sweden and Austria will vote in this semi-final. Qualifiers are marked in blue.

### Grand Final

1. ↑  The bridge of the song is in Portuguese and Norwegian.