Ukraine soars with the public’s votes and wins Eurovision 2022 | pop art

The grand final of Eurovision was held on Saturday (14) in Turin, Italy, the country that won the last edition. In 2020, there was no competition due to the pandemic. This year, the show featured Italian singer Laura Puccini, singer Mica and presenter Alessandro Cattelan.

The frontrunner, Ukraine, took advantage of the public vote to achieve victory. Until the last minutes, the dispute was balanced between the Ukrainians, the United Kingdom, Spain and Sweden.

Before obtaining the general classification, the Kalush Orchestra took ninth place, almost 100 points behind British singer Sam Ryder. But, with the gains of 439 spectators, he reached 631, shot in first place, confirming his favour, ending the competition with an advantage of nearly 200 points.

The song “Stefania”, a rap blending rhythms from local folklore, was composed before the Russian invasion of Ukraine. But the lyrics, presented as a message to the mother, are gaining traction in the current context. With lines like “I will always find my way home, even if all roads are destroyed,” the song appears to address the millions of Ukrainians who have had to flee the country.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky congratulated the group on their victory in a social media post. Our courage conquers the world, our music conquers Europe. Zelensky also noted that in 2023 the country will host the festival decision and demanded peace on Ukrainian lands.

In a victory speech, one of the squad members, Oleh Psiuk, reinforced pleas for help to Ukraine and the city of Mariupol, one of the cities most devastated by the Russian invasion.

Watch the final standings for Eurovision 2022 here:

1. Ukraine
2. United kingdom
3. Spain
4. Sweden
5. Serbia
6. Italia
7. Moldova
8. Greece
9. Portugal
10. Norway
11. Holland
12. Poland
13. Estonia
14. Lithuania
15. Australia
16. Azerbaijan
17. Switzerland
18. Romania
19. Belgium
20. Armenia
21. Finland
22. Czech Republic
23. Iceland
24. France
25. Germany

Created in 1956, Eurovision participates in practically all the countries of the old continent, as well as some special guest countries – such as Australia or Morocco. The Grand Finale is always broadcast live on television across Europe and has an audience of nearly 200 million people.

Eurovision was famous for revealing big names in world music, such as Spain’s Julio Iglesias, and the Swedish group ABBA in the 1970s, as well as Canadian singer Celine Dion and British actress Olivia Newton-John.