Canticum Certamine 17

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**Canticum Certamine 17**, often known as **CC 17**, is the seventeenth edition of Canticum Certamine. It took place in Gdańsk-Sopot, Poland, following Margaret's victory in the previous edition with the song "Tańcz głupia". It was the second time Poland hosted the contest.

Fifty-one countries confirmed their participation in the edition. Australia received an invitation to return to the contest, this decision supported by the CBU and viewers worldwide, Meanwhile Hungary, Luxembourg, Monaco and Romania withdrew from the contest. Türkiye made their debut this edition.

Russia was the winner of this edition, with the song "Stantsuyu Na Tvoyey Mogile" performed by Green Apelsin. This was Russia's first victory in the history of Canticum Certamine, as well as their first ever top three placement in the final. The song gathered a grand total of 488 points, becoming the second highest placing winner points-wise, 77 points ahead of the runner-up, Bosnia and Herzegovina, marking their best result. Estonia finished on third place, meanwhile Montenegro, Ukraine and Finland completed the top 6 of the edition. All countries that qualified from the pre-qualification round managed to qualify into the final.

## Location

Poland, officially known as the Republic of Poland, is a captivating country located in Central Europe. It is bordered by several countries, including Germany to the west, the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south, Ukraine and Belarus to the east, and Lithuania and Russia to the northeast. Poland's geography is diverse and offers a range of landscapes. In the north, you'll find the stunning Baltic Sea coastline with its sandy beaches and charming seaside towns. Moving towards the center, you'll encounter vast plains and rolling hills, dotted with picturesque lakes and rivers. And in the south, you'll be greeted by the breathtaking Tatra Mountains, which offer opportunities for hiking, skiing, and enjoying the beauty of nature.

Ergo Arena (commonly known as *Hala Gdańsk-Sopot*) is a multi-purpose indoor arena, that was opened in 2010. The boundary between two cities – Sopot and Gdańsk – runs through the very middle of the hall. The arena has a capacity of 11,409 people, for sports events and up to 15,000, with standing places, for concerts. The first major event in the hall took place on November 26, 2010, when Lady Gaga performed during The Monster Ball Tour, with Semi Precious Weapons as her opening act, to more than 12,000 people.The hall can host athletics, handball, volleyball, basketball, tennis, table tennis, equestrian and martial arts competitions, as well as hockey competitions on an artificial ice rink. The facility is adapted to organize theater and cinema performances, concerts, exhibitions, and conferences.

    Caroline Derpienski, Omenaa Mensah, and Marcin Prokop are the presenters of the seventeenth edition of Canticum Certamine.

**Caroline Derpienski** is a Polish-American Model and Instagram Star based in Miami, Florida. She is of Polish, German and Russian descent. She is a runway model in various US fashion weeks like Los Angeles Fashion Week, New York Fashion Week, and Miami Swim Week. Besides that, Caroline is a certified makeup artist, business student, and social media specialist. At age 13, she entered her first beauty pageant. Since then, she has won titles such as *Miss Elite Monaco*, *Queen of Poland 2019*, and *Queen of bikini 2019*. She is the first polish woman who opened Miami Swim Week. She modeled during New York, Los Angeles, Miami, Milan, Paris and Greece Fashion Weeks.

Ghanian-Polish weather forecaster and television presenter, **Omenaa Mensah** was born in Jelenia Góra. During her studies, she founded the Omi Hair company, which styled African hairstyles. She also earned extra money as a model, working both in Poland and in Europe. In 2019, she gave an interview to Forbes Afrique about the Omenaa Foundation and supporting the education of African children. Her photos appeared twice on the covers of the Polish edition of Forbes magazine: in 2020 and 2023, and in interviews for this title she presented her business and charity activities. In March 2023, she recorded a series of podcasts on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the #EY Entrepreneur of the Year competition, to which she invited leading Polish entrepreneurs.

In 1997, **Marcin Prokop** started his journalistic activity by writing articles for the press, his articles were published, among others, in the magazines Przekrój, Gazeta Wyborcza, Wprost and Glamour. In 1997–1998 he was *the product manager* of the music label Bertelsmann Media BMG Poland. In the years 1998–2000 he was the marketing director, and in 2002 - the general director of the Machina Press Publishing House, which published the magazines "Machina ", "Fan Magazyn", "Beverly" and "Miss". He was the editor-in-chief of "Machina" (2000-2002), the monthly "Film" (2004-2007) and the weekly "Przekrój" (2012-2013).

## Format

### Semi-final allocation draw

The draw to determine the allocation of the participating countries into their respective semi-finals took place on the 5th of August 2023. The first part of the draw determined in which semi-final the Big Six would have to vote. The second part of the draw decided in which half of the respective semi-finals each country would perform, with the exact running order determined by the producers of the show at a later date. Twenty countries will participate in both semi-finals, respectively. From each semi-final, ten countries will join the "Big 6" in the final, where a total of twenty-six countries will participate.

The forty semi-finalists were allocated into six pots, based on their geographical place and cultural similarities. Drawing from different pots helps in reducing the chance of so-called neighbour voting and increasing suspense in the semi-finals. Each time a country was drawn from the pot, its semi-final and half of the semi-final was determined.

The six pots were the following:

* Bosnia and Herzegovina
* Kosovo
* Montenegro
* North Macedonia
* Serbia
* Slovenia
* Croatia
* France
* Italy
* Portugal
* San Marino
* Spain
* Czech Republic
* Kazakhstan
* Lithuania
* Russia
* Slovakia
 Pot 4
 * Armenia
* Azerbaijan
* Egypt
* Israel
* Lebanon
* Tunisia
* Uzbekistan
* Estonia
* Faroe Islands
* Finland
* Latvia
* Norway
* Austria
* Belgium
* Germany
* Ireland
* United Kingdom

## Participating countries

### Semi-final 1

Twenty countries participated in the first semi-final. Iceland, Poland and Morocco also voted in this semi-final. The highlighted countries qualified for the final.

### Semi-final 2

Twenty countries participated in the first semi-final. Greece, Malta and Switzerland also voted in this semi-final. The highlighted countries qualified for the final.

## Other countries

*Further information: List of countries in Canticum Certamine*