Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2003

The Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2003 was the inaugural edition of the annual Junior Eurovision Song Contest for young singers aged eight to fifteen. It was held on 15 November 2003, in Copenhagen, Denmark. With Camilla Ottesen and Remee as the presenters, the contest was won by the then eleven-year-old Dino Jelušić, who represented Croatia with his song "Ti si moja prva ljubav" (You are my first love) while second and third place went to Spain and the United Kingdom respectively. The next time that a country would win on its first attempt was Italy in 2014.

Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2003
Dates
Grand final15 November 2003
Host
VenueForum Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
Presenter(s)Camilla Ottesen,
Remee
Directed byArne J. Rasmussen
Executive supervisorSvante Stockselius
Executive producerPreben Vridstoft
Host broadcasterDanmarks Radio (DR)
Opening actFu:el and Dance Faction (not included in televised broadcast)
Interval actSugababes performing "Hole in the Head",
Busted performing "Crashed the Wedding"
Websitejunioreurovision.tv/event/copenhagen-2003
Participants
Number of entries16
Debuting countries
Participation map
  •      Participating countries
Vote
Voting systemEach country awards 12, 10, 8–1 points to their 10 favourite songs.
Nul pointsNone
Winning song Croatia
"Ti si moja prva ljubav"

It was the first Eurovision contest to be broadcast in the 16:9 widescreen and high definition, but was also offered to broadcasters in the traditional 4:3 aspect ratio. It was also the first Eurovision Song Contest where a DVD of the contest would be released. It was decided that the country that won the contest would not necessarily host the next contest, to reduce the pressure on the contestants. It was announced before the contest took place that the next edition would be held in the United Kingdom (although in the end this did not happen).

Origins and history
See also: Junior Eurovision Song Contest

The origins of the contest date back to 2000 when Danmarks Radio held a song contest for Danish children that year and the following year.[1][2] The idea was extended to a Scandinavian song festival in 2002, MGP Nordic, with Denmark, Norway and Sweden as participants.[3][4] The EBU picked up the idea for a song contest featuring children and opened the competition to all EBU member broadcasters making it a pan-European event. The working title of the programme was "Eurovision Song Contest for Children",[5] branded with the name of the EBU's long-running and already popular song competition, the Eurovision Song Contest.

Location
Further information on the host city: Copenhagen

Denmark was asked to host the first programme after their experience with their own contests and the MGP Nordic.[6] Copenhagen was confirmed as the host city in November 2002.[7] In January 2003, it was announced that the Danish broadcaster would host the inaugural contest at the 8,000 capacity Forum venue in the Danish capital.[8]

Venue
Forum in Copenhagen was the venue for the inaugural contest.

Forum Copenhagen (Danish: Forum København) is a large multi-purpose, rentable indoor arena located in Frederiksberg, Copenhagen, Denmark. It hosts a large variety of concerts, markets, exhibitions and other events. The venue can hold up to 10,000 people depending on the event. The Forum operates as a convention center, concert hall and indoor arena.

It was opened in February 1926 to host a car exhibition and was last renovated in 1996–97. Over two storeys there is a combined exhibition floor area of 5,000 m² and a separate restaurant for up to 250 seated guests. The Metro station Forum is adjacent to the building. Forum Copenhagen was designed by Oscar Gundlach-Pedersen, and the lighting was from Poul Henningsen's brand new PH-lamp. In 1929 it held an architecture exhibition, which was one of the first presentations of functionalism in Denmark, namely the Housing and Building Exhibition in Forum. It was at this exhibition that Arne Jacobsen and Flemming Lassen exhibited their subscription to the cylindrical "House of the Future".

Format

Presenters

In February 2003, there was speculation regarding the potential host of the first ever Eurovision Song Contest for Children. Initially, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), the organizer of the show, announced the possible allocation of this role to Irish vocalist and Eurovision Song Contest 1997 co-host Ronan Keating although no contract had yet been signed.[9] On 10 October 2003, however, it was officially announced that the contest would be hosted by the Danish duo consisting of Camilla Ottesen and rapper Remee.[10]

Running order

The draw for the running order of the contest was held on 6 October at Radiohuset, with Greece drawn to open the contest and the Netherlands drawn to close.[11]

Voting

All countries used televoting to decide on their top ten. In normal Eurovision fashion, each country's favourite song was given 12 points, their second favourite 10, and their third to tenth favourites were given 8–1 points.

Opening and interval acts

The opening number was performed by Fu:el and Dance Faction, although this was not included in televised broadcast. The halftime entertainment was provided by two acts from the UK.[12] Busted performed "Crashed the Wedding" but Charlie Simpson was absent due to illness. However, the following day he was present for a radio interview in the UK where it was implied by both himself and the other band members, that this was, in fact, a lie. The real reason for his absence was that he hated Eurovision. The Sugababes performed "Hole in the Head".

Postcards

The postcards featured all of the participants (and their backing dancers/singers) exploring different parts of Copenhagen. The postcard's audio would be an instrumental version of the opening theme. The following list shows the various places they visited:

  1.  Greece – The Tivoli Gardens
  2.  Croatia – Forum Copenhagen
  3. Cyprus – Royal Danish Theatre
  4. Belarus – Danish Aquarium
  5.  Latvia – Strøget
  6.  Macedonia – Copenhagen Lakes
  7.  Poland – A hotel in Copenhagen
  8.  Norway – A hairdressers in Copenhagen
  9.  Spain – Parken
  10.  Romania – Louis Tussaud's Wax Museum
  11.  Belgium – Copenhagen Skatepark
  12.  United Kingdom – Copenhagen Zoo
  13.  Denmark – A hotdog stand in Copenhagen
  14.  Sweden – The Round Tower
  15.  Malta – A riding school in Copenhagen
  16.  Netherlands – An internet café in Copenhagen

Participating countries

16 countries competed in the first edition of the Junior Eurovision Song Contest.[13] In an original press release for the contest, then entitled the "Eurovision Song Contest for Children", a draw was held to select 15 countries to take part in the inaugural contest, with Slovakian broadcaster Slovenská televízia (STV) and German broadcaster ARD being drawn to compete along with 13 other countries.[5]

These countries would eventually be replaced by entries from Poland, Cyprus (added as 16th country before Germany and Slovakia withdrew) and Belarus, in their first ever Eurovision event. The Finnish broadcaster Yle also expressed a debut in the first contest, but went on to just broadcast it instead.[14]

Results
Draw Country Artist Song Language Place Points
01  Greece Nicolas Ganopoulos "Fili gia panta" (Φίλοι για πάντα) Greek 8 53
02  Croatia Dino Jelušić "Ti si moja prva ljubav" Croatian 1 134
03 Cyprus Theodora Rafti "Mia efhi" (Μια ευχή) Greek 14 16
04 Belarus Volha Satsiuk "Tantsuy" (Танцуй) Belarusian 4 103
05  Latvia Dzintars Čīča "Tu esi vasarā" Latvian 9 37
06  Macedonia Marija & Viktorija "Ti ne me poznavaš" (Ти не ме познаваш) Macedonian 12 19
07  Poland Katarzyna Żurawik "Coś mnie nosi" Polish 16 3
08  Norway 2U "Sinnsykt gal forelsket" Norwegian 13 18
09  Spain Sergio "Desde el cielo" Spanish 2 125
10  Romania Bubu "Tobele sunt viața mea" Romanian 10 35
11  Belgium X!NK "De vriendschapsband" Dutch 6 83
12  United Kingdom Tom Morley "My Song for the World" English 3 118
13  Denmark Anne Gadegaard "Arabiens drøm" Danish 5 93
14  Sweden The Honeypies "Stoppa mig" Swedish 15 12
15  Malta Sarah Harrison "Like a Star" English 7 56
16  Netherlands Roel Felius "Mijn ogen zeggen alles" Dutch 11 23

Scoreboard
Results
Total score
Greece
Croatia
Cyprus
Belarus
Latvia
Macedonia
Poland
Norway
Spain
Romania
Belgium
United Kingdom
Denmark
Sweden
Malta
Netherlands
Contestants
 Greece 5371215117527131
Croatia 1341081081210122128888810
Cyprus 161213
Belarus 10351261010121017554763
Latvia 375843313136
Macedonia 19102124
Poland 33
Norway 18132534
Spain 12588106128868101266107
Romania 3545252665
Belgium 833627466483675412
United Kingdom 118747127375101041210128
Denmark 9362456758126741272
Sweden 1212351
Malta 56233414741101025
Netherlands 231421222

12 points

Below is a summary of the maximum 12 points each country awarded to another:

N.ContestantVoting nation
3 CroatiaMacedonia, Norway, Romania
United KingdomBelarus, Denmark, Malta
2 BelarusCroatia, Poland
DenmarkSpain, Sweden
SpainLatvia, United Kingdom
1 BelgiumNetherlands
CyprusGreece
GreeceCyprus
NetherlandsBelgium

International broadcasts and voting

The rights to broadcast the contest were also acquired by broadcasters in Iceland (RÚV),[15] Finland (Yle), Serbia and Montenegro (RTS/RTCG), Estonia (ETV), Germany (KI.KA), Australia (SBS) and Kosovo (RTK). Some of the paticipating broadcasters also transmitted the programme live on radio.[16]

Voting and spokespersons

Participating countries

Non-participating countries

Other countries

For a country to be eligible for potential participation in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest, it needs to be an active member of the EBU. It is currently unknown whether the EBU issue invitations of participation to all 56 active members like they do for the Eurovision Song Contest.

  •  Finland – Finnish broadcaster Yle expressed an interest in participating in the contest. However, it was unsuccessful and they went on to broadcast it instead.[16]
  •  Germany – The EBU announced that they would hold a draw to determine which countries would participate in the contest. German broadcaster KiKa was one of the countries drawn.[5] However, they announced their withdrawal from the contest and went on to broadcast it instead.[16]
  •  Ireland – After Germany and Slovakia withdrew,[21] the EBU sent an invitation to Irish broadcaster Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ) who then submitted preliminary applications, but in the end declined to participate or broadcast the contest.[22]
  •  Israel – The EBU also sent an invitation to the Israel Broadcasting Authority (IBA), but they declined to participate and also did not broadcast it.[21] Ireland and Israel would later be replaced by Poland and Belarus, who received the final spot.[21]
  •  Slovakia – Slovakian broadcaster Slovenská televízia (STV), along with KiKa, was drawn to participate in the contest,[5] however declined to participate and did not broadcast the show either.

Official album
Junior Eurovision Song Contest: Copenhagen 2003
Compilation album by
Junior Eurovision Song Contest
ReleasedNovember 2003
GenrePop
Length46:44
LabelUniversal
Junior Eurovision Song Contest chronology
Junior Eurovision Song Contest: Copenhagen 2003
(2003)		 JESC: Lillehammer 2004
(2004)

Junior Eurovision Song Contest: Copenhagen 2003, is a compilation album put together by the European Broadcasting Union, and was released by Universal Music Group on November 2003. The album features all the songs from the 2003 contest. On the track list Cyprus was misspelt as Cypres.[23]

See also

References
  1. "IMDB: Børne1'erens melodi grand prix 2000". IMDb. 1 May 2000. Retrieved 3 May 2008.
  2. "IMDB: de unges melodi grand prix 2001". IMDb. 1 May 2001. Retrieved 3 May 2008.
  3. "IMDB: MGP Nordic 2002". IMDb. 1 December 2002. Retrieved 3 May 2008.
  4. "MGP Nordic 2002". esconnet.dk (in Danish). 27 April 2002. Archived from the original on 25 October 2007. Retrieved 3 May 2008.
  5. "First EBU press release on JESC 2003". European Broadcasting Union. 22 November 2002. Archived from the original on 14 September 2012. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
  6. "Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2003". web.archive.org. Archived from the original on 11 June 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2020.
  7. "Eurovision Copenhagen to host first EMGP". ESCToday.com. 27 November 2002. Retrieved 30 March 2020.
  8. "Eurovision Forum to host Eurovision for Children". ESCToday.com. 8 January 2003. Retrieved 30 March 2020.
  9. "Eurovision Ronan Keating may host Junior Eurovision". ESCToday.com. 22 February 2003. Retrieved 30 March 2020.
  10. "Eurovision Running order Junior Eurovision Song Contest known". ESCToday.com. 7 October 2003. Retrieved 30 March 2020.
  11. "First ever Junior Eurovision Song Contest". European Broadcasting Union. 7 October 2003. Archived from the original on 15 May 2011. Retrieved 1 August 2014.
  12. "Eurovision Sugababes and Busted interval acts Junior Eurovision". ESCToday.com. 17 October 2003. Retrieved 30 March 2020.
  13. "Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2003". European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 1 August 2014.
  14. "TV-OHJELMA: YLE2 21:15 Junior Euroviisut 2003". netello.fi (in Finnish). Archived from the original on 16 August 2016. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
  15. "The Event - EBU Press Conference". web.archive.org. 9 October 2006.
  16. "The new Junior Eurovision Song Contest in high definition". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 28 September 2012. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
  17. Zouboulakis, I. (1 November 2003). "Επιλογές / 21:00, ET1 "Eurovision Junior"" [TV choices / 21:00, ET1 "Eurovision Junior"]. To Vima (in Greek). p. 49.
  18. "Tuvojas "mazā" Eirovīzija". diena.lv. Retrieved 29 July 2018.
  19. "Junior Eurovision Song Contest". UKGameshows. Retrieved 12 August 2012.
  20. "EBU.CH :: EBU news - 2003_11_17". web.archive.org. 28 September 2012.
  21. "Junior ESC". esckaz.com.
  22. Granger, Anthony (12 December 2013). "Ireland: RTE Denies Interest In Junior Eurovision". Retrieved 18 January 2020.
  23. "Various - Junior Eurovision Song Contest Copenhagen 2003". Discogs. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
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