The 2017 edition of Eurovision Young Dancers will be the smallest contest in the thirty-two years since it was first held in 1985.
Just eight countries will be taking part in the 15th edition of Eurovision Young Dancers in Prague, Czech Republic this December. In previous years a minimum of 10 competing countries were required to take part for the contest to be held. Since its return to screens in 2011 the competition had seen 10 countries take to the stage showcasing their best young dancers.
Taking part in this years contest are:
- Czech Republic โ Ceska Televize
- Germany โ WDR
- Malta โ PBS
- Norway โ NRK
- Poland โ TVP
- Portugal โ RTP
- Slovenia โ RTVSLO
- Sweden โ SVT
Portugal who won the Eurovision Song Contest 2017 returns to the competition after a long absence. The country last took part in the competition in 2011 where they were represented byย Ricardo Macedo, this years appearance in the competition will be only the fourth time that Portugal has taken part in the competition. While, Albania who debuted in 2015 and Slovakia who returned to the contest two years ago have both withdrawn from the competition.
Eurovision Young Dancers and Eurovision Young Musicians have both seen the number of participating nations decrease in the past year. In 2016 just eleven countries took part in Eurovision Young Musicians in Cologne, Germany. This was the lowest number of competing countries in the event since the 1992 contest in Brussels, Belgium when eleven countries also participated.
Source: WDR
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First held in 1985 a total of 37 countries have competed at least once in the contest, including Canada in 1987. The competition is open to young dancers who are aged between 16 and 21 years old. Each country is represented by either a solo dancer or a couple, who perform a routine of their choosing for the jury. The jury will select two acts to go through to the final round which is a 90 second dance off. Each dancer is given 45 seconds to perform and impress the judges, at the end of the performances the judges select the winner.
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