Israel jumps up in the odds after accidental leaked results appear to show 40% of votes in Italy going to Golan; Belgian broadcaster interrupts show with anti-Israel message
Israel’s Eden Golan advanced to the grand final of the Eurovision on Thursday night in Malmo, Sweden, qualifying with her song “Hurricane” despite months of anti-Israel protests against her participation.
Golan will now return to the stage on Saturday evening to compete in the grand final, where oddsmakers have predicted she will finish in the top 10; Israel jumped up to second in the ranks shortly after the semifinal, after weeks of sitting in the 8th spot.
While a mass anti-Israel protest was held earlier Thursday in the southern Swedish city — as well as a much smaller pro-Israel gathering — Golan’s performance went off undisturbed.
Within the arena, a smattering of boos could be heard as she was on stage, as well as loud cheers, but the European Broadcasting Union employs anti-boo technology to prevent any such noises making it to the live broadcast. The Kan public broadcaster said that Golan practiced singing while being booed in order to prepare for her performance.
In her only comments on stage after completing the song on Thursday night, Golan simply exclaimed “thank you so much!”
The Italian public broadcaster appeared to accidentally reveal live on air the results of its country’s televote, handing Israel a whopping 39% of the votes, way ahead of the second vote-getter, Netherlands, which got just 7%. The vote distribution in the semifinals is not meant to be released until after the final, and the percentages are not generally published. The EBU did not respond to a request for comment.
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— כאן (@kann) May 9, 2024
At a press conference for those who advanced to the finals, held shortly after the show, Golan said that she felt “overwhelmed with emotions — it’s truly such an honor to be here on stage, performing and showing our voice and representing us with pride and making it to the finals.”
Golan was asked by a Polish journalist, Szymon Stellmaszyk, if she felt that she should not have attended the contest since it would bring “risk and danger” to the other contestants. A visibly taken-aback Golan was told by the host of the press conference that she did not need to answer, but she responded that “I think we’re all here for one reason and one reason only. And the EBU is taking all safety precautions to make this a safe and united place for everyone.”
The Israeli singer has been accompanied by a heavy security presence throughout the competition, and has skipped almost all events in Malmo aside from the live shows and dress rehearsals, in light of a wide range of threats made against Israel’s participation.
Shortly before her performance, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sent his best wishes to Golan, and commended her for standing up in the face of animosity.
“You’re competing not just in the Eurovision in a proud and very impressive manner, but you are competing successfully in the face of an ugly wave of antisemitism — and you are standing up to it and representing the State of Israel with huge honor,” he said in a video message.
A reporter from the Ynet news outlet posted a video online of a man being escorted out of the arena on Thursday evening while holding a Palestinian flag, as the Eurovision has a longstanding rule against flags from non-participating countries.