Latvia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2002

Background

Main article: Latvia in the Eurovision Song Contest

Prior to the 2002 contest, Latvian Television (LTV) had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest representing Latvia two times since its first entry in 2000 with the song "My Star" performed by Brainstorm which placed 3rd. In the , it placed 18th with the song "Too Much" performed by Arnis Mednis. As part of its duties as participating broadcaster, LTV organises the selection of its entry in the Eurovision Song Contest and broadcasts the event in the country. Since its debut in 2000, LTV had organised the selection show Eirodziesma, a selection procedure that was continued in order to select its entry for the 2002 contest.

Before Eurovision

{{lang|lv|Eirodziesma}} ''2002''

Eirodziesma 2002 was the third edition of Eirodziesma, the music competition organised by LTV to select its entries for the Eurovision Song Contest. The competition took place at the Olympic Center in Ventspils on 2 March 2002, hosted by Ija Circene and Ēriks Niedra and broadcast on LTV1.

Competing entries

Artists and songwriters were able to submit their entries to the broadcaster between 15 October 2001 and 30 November 2001. A record 68 entries were submitted at the conclusion of the submission period. A jury panel appointed by LTV evaluated the submitted songs and selected fifteen entries for the competition. The jury panel consisted of Munro Forbes (British television director and music manager), Kato Hansen (representative of OGAE Norway), Dave Benton (Estonian Eurovision Song Contest 2001 winner), Gediminas Žujus (Lithuanian producer and composer), Antero Päiväläinen (Finnish producer and representative of Taurus Music), Ólöf Jónsdóttir (Eurovision expert at the Iceland Music Information Centre), Sinia Koussolla (Greek music expert), Jørgen Olsen (Danish Eurovision Song Contest 2000 winner) and Brainstorm (2000 Latvian Eurovision entrant). The fifteen competing artists and songs were announced during a press conference on 14 December 2001.

Final

The final took place on 2 March 2002. Fifteen acts competed and the song with the highest number of votes from the public, "I Wanna" performed by Marija Naumova, was declared the winner. A preliminary vote by a jury panel and the Latvian public prior to the final also selected Marija Naumova as the winner.

At Eurovision

According to Eurovision rules, all nations with the exceptions of the bottom six countries in the 2001 contest competed in the final. Latvia was originally relegated for being one of the six lowest scoring countries, but was eventually allowed to compete after Portugal withdrew from the contest.

On 9 November 2001, a special allocation draw was held which determined the running order and Latvia was set to perform in position 23, following the entry from the and before the entry from . The Latvian performance was largely credited for its stage presentation and choreography between Marie N and her backing performers, and the nation won the contest placing first with a score of 176 points. This was the first, and as of 2025 only victory for Latvia in the Eurovision Song Contest.

The show was broadcast in Latvia on LTV1 featuring commentary by Kārlis Streips.

Voting

Below is a breakdown of points awarded to Latvia and awarded by Latvia in the contest. The nation awarded its 12 points to in the contest. LTV appointed Ēriks Niedra as its spokesperson to announce the Latvian votes during the final.

References

References

1. "Latvia Country Profile". [[European Broadcasting Union.
2. (15 January 2022). "Igo nepiedalīsies Eirovīzijas dziesmu konkursā".
3. (10 November 2001). "'Eirovīzijā 2002' Latvijas pārstāvis uzstāsies priekšpēdējais".
4. Bakker, Sietse. (17 November 2003). "69 songs for Latvian national final 2004".
5. "Eirodziesma 2002 ir sākusies!".
6. (14 December 2001). "Eirovīzijas dziesmu konkursa Latvijas finālā piedalīsies 15 dziesmas".
7. Siim, Jarmo. (3 March 2002). "Marija Naumova comes to Tallinn on May 25th".
8. (3 March 2002). "Latviju Eirovīzijā pārstāvēs Marija Naumova".
9. "Rules of the 47th Eurovision Song Contest, 2002". European Broadcasting Union.
10. "Final of Tallinn 2002". European Broadcasting Union.
11. "Results of the Final of Tallinn 2002". European Broadcasting Union.