LTV has confirmed to Eurovoix.com that Latvia will not be returning to the Junior Eurovision Song Contest later this year in Tbilisi, Georgia.
Latvia has become the second country to state that they will not be returning to the Junior Eurovision Song Contest this year. Following RTVSLO yesterday, LTV the Latvian national broadcaster has ruled out sending a competitor to this years contest in Tbilisi, Georgia.
Latvia was one of the original sixteen countries to take part in the first edition of the Junior Eurovision Song Contest in Copenhagen, Denmark. Latvia competed in the contest for a period of three years before withdrawing from the contest. Latvia’s best result during this period was at the 2003 contest whereย Dzintars ฤฤซฤa finished 9th with a total of 37 points, this included 8 points from Belarus.
Latvia returned to the contest in 2010 when the contest traveled to Minsk, Belarus.ย ล arlote Lฤnmane & Sea Stones brought Latvia only their second ever top 10 finish with the song “Viva la Dance”, she scored 51 points, the highest points total for a Latvian Junior Eurovision entry. Following the 2011 contest in Yerevan, Latvia withdrew from the contest and has not returned.
To date the following countries have confirmed that they will not be participating:
- Latvia (2003-2005, 2010-2011)
- Slovenia (2014-2015)
The 15th edition of the Junior Eurovision Song Contest later this year in Tbilisi, Georgia. The contest is to be held at the Tbilisi Sports Palace on November 26. It is the first time that the three-time winners of the contest have hosted Junior Eurovision.
Changes have been made to the rules of this years contest.ย The amount of a song that can be performed in English has been increased to 40% of the lyrics. While the number of voices on the backing track has been increased from five to six singers.
To date the following countries have confirmed their participation in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2017:
- Belarus
- Cyprus
- Georgia โ ย Host nation
- Ireland
- Malta
- The Netherlands
- Russia
The following countries participated in the 2016 contest but are yet to publicly confirm participation:
- Albania
- Armenia
- Australia
- Bulgaria
- Israel
- Italy
- FYR Macedonia
- Poland
- Serbia
- Ukraine
Source: LTV
Hopefully Latvia returns next year! ๐