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About Israel...
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2005 Result
Points in Semi Final: 158
Position in Semi Final: 7th
Points in Final: 154
Position in Final: 4th
2006 Contest: Directly qualified to Final
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History (1956 to 2004)
Israel's previous appearances: 27 year(s) out of 49
Years participated: 1973-1979; 1981-1983; 1985-1993; 1995; 1998-
Best result: 1st (1978, 1979, 1998)
I've lost track of the number of times that bright sparks have said to me "Why is Israel in Eurovision? It's not even part of Europe!" Unfortunately, it's difficult to reply "It's a member of the European Broadcasting Union, so it doesn't actually matter where the country is" without sounding like a Eurogeek. Nevertheless, despite not being in Europe, Israel's record in the contest is rather good, winning three times - in 1978 ('A Ba Ni Bi'), 1979 ('Hallelujah') and 1998. The most recent of these victories was by the splendid Dana International, famed as much for being transexual (she used to be a man) as for her song 'Diva'. I'm sure women across Europe (and Israel) were wondering how a former man could look so darn good as a woman. After a good 5th place at the Jerusalem contest in 1999, Israel has struggled during the noughties, managing no higher than 12th in 2002. Some have suggested that politics has played a part, though, in truth, few of Israel's songs since Dana International have been particularly strong. The best was perhaps the 2004 entry - 'Le'ha'amin' by David d'Or - which I thought was rather beautiful. However, David's castrato voice was evidently not to everyone's taste, and Israel just missed out on a place in the Final by finishing 11th in the Semi. As a result, the country must once again get through the Semi Final if it is to take part in Saturday's Final.
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This year's entry
Position in Semi Final draw: 7
Position in Final draw: 11
What I said prior to the Semi Final:
"Israel returned to its 'Kdam' national final format after a spell of using internal selections, the result being that Shiri Maymon and the song 'Hasheket shenish'ar' will represent the country in Kiev. Shiri has a lovely voice, and it's a pleasant enough ballad, but the song is not especially memorable after (what will be for most televoters) a single listen - it is certainly a grower though, and brings to mind the lush ballads that used to serve Luxembourg and Monaco so well."
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What I predicted...
My prediction for Semi Final: 19th to 21st
My prediction for Final: Will not qualify
What I predicted prior to the Semi Final:
"The original indications were that the song would be performed in Hebrew at the Contest (as per the version on the official compilation CD), though it's now clear that it will include a section in English. Whether this will work remains to be seen - Ruslana managed to pull off singing in English and Ukrainian last year, but there is always a danger that the join can sound clunky and interrupt the flow of the song. Whichever, with Shiri performing immediately after the slowies from Latvia and Monaco, I can't help wondering whether the viewers at home will have had ballad overload by the time they hear the Israeli entry. Coral's odds of 40-1 suggest that Israel will miss out on qualification, while the fans (6th place in the Soult.com Eurovision Poll 2005) rate the Israeli entry highly - however, it's worth remembering that the Poll 2004, while largely close to the eventual result, significantly over-estimated Israeli support. My hunch is that while this is a nice song, it simply isn't memorable enough to beat off the competition - for me, a place for Israel in the Final would be a surprise."
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What you thought...
Final Poll Ranking: out of 39 ()
(Updated 22 May 2005; change refers to movement over final week)
In the run up to the Contest, 27,998 visitors to this site voted for their favourite song in the Soult.com Eurovision Poll (up from 5,000 in 2004!)
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What actually happened...
Well, sometimes you just have to reserve judgment until you see and hear the performance. Everything about this performance worked well - Shiri looked beautiful in a stunning flowing gown, and gave an impressive vocal performance that reminded me of Mariah Carey (in a good way - I like Mariah Carey). The presentation also worked well, with well-behaved backing singers, a pianist and a guitarist complementing rather than competing with Shiri's stage presence. Equally, it is unlikely that the camera's seeming preoccupation with Shiri's bosom did Israeli prospects any harm. As for the song? Well, I still don't think it's that great, though contrary to expectations, the switch into English halfway through worked really well - to untrained ears, Hebrew is not an easy language to listen to, and I think singing part of it in English gave the song much more meaning to people than would otherwise have been the case. Needless to say, 158 points (including the maximum 'douze points' from Andorra, Belarus and Monaco) and 7th place in the Semi Final was more than enough to secure Israel's place in the Final.
A review of the Final performance will appear here later.
Interestingly, Israel picked up an almost identical number of points in the Final (154), but with the distribution of votes meaning that this was enough to secure an excellent 4th place, Israel's best result since its last victory in 1998. It does mean, however, that my prediction was wrong...
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What the bookies thought...
 | Israel to win: | 21/05/05 (prior to Final) | 33-1 |
| | 19/05/05 (after Semi Final) | 40-1 |
| | 19/05/05 (prior to Semi Final) | 40-1 |
| | 16/05/05 | 40-1 |
| | 15/05/05 | 40-1 |
| | 08/05/05 | 40-1 |
| | 02/05/05 | 40-1 |
| | 24/04/05 | 20-1 |
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At least I wasn't alone in not seeing the potential of the Israeli song - with odds of 33-1, even after securing its place in the Final, the bookies were caught out too.
(Odds quoted here were those offered by Coral.co.uk. 'F' indicates favourite, 'JF' joint favourite.)
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Links
 http://www.shiri-maimon.co.il/
 http://eurovil.iba.org.il/
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Notes (see 'History' above)
- The 1956 Contest (where each country had two songs) is counted as a single appearance;
- Countries eliminated in the 1993 preliminary heat (EE, HU, RO, SK) ARE NOT counted as making an appearance in that year's Contest;
- Countries eliminated in the 1996 preliminary heat (DE, DK, HU, IL, MK, RO, RU) ARE NOT counted as making an appearance in that year's Contest;
- Countries eliminated in the 2004, 2005 and 2006 Semi Finals ARE counted as making an appearance in that year's Contest.
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Your comments (105)
From Snir, Israel
Added 22:06:40 2006-05-11
Shiri Maymon was an amazing representation of our country - beautiful talented women.
But - Israel has so many up-beat songs, like Diva for instance... and now, almost 10 years following our last win with Diva, we have gained Offer Nissim and Henree feat. Nikka - two world-famous DJs from Israel that are international succeses.
If Eurovision won't be considered a catchy "B-list" type competition for Israeli stars, we would have won so many more times with our up-beat songs.
Israel = UPBEAT, BEACH, SEX, FUN!
I just wish next year at least that would actually be expressed in our song.. Eddie is bad :(
From John, United Kingdom
Added 14:25:12 2006-04-19
OH MY GOD !!!!
The best song i've ever heard!!!!
in the Semi final was a better performance !! but... anyway Israel you should have won!!!!!!
what a great song i downloaded the video of the semi final !!! its absolutely INCREDIBLE!!!
everything is so PERFECT !!! 12 pts. to ISRAEL !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
From Tom, United Kingdom
Added 23:04:31 2006-03-10
I fell in love with Shiri the moment she stepped on stage and sung her first note. She was absolutely incredible. My favourite Eurovision entry EVER, seriously. (And my God was she stunning too..) I should buy that Eurovision 2005 DVD to watch her again. I voted Shiri!
From ANDREW, PHILIPPINES
Added 18:49:47 2005-11-3
i must say that Shiri Maymon stole my heart. Everytime i hear her enchenting song (Hasheket Shenish'ar)it always makes me cry.
TOTALLY. Plus her beauty it's mezmorizin'. Luckly i recorded her performance , so I can play it over and over and over again.
It's the best entry this year...
it deserves a FIRST place and I THINK its the best ISRAELI ENTRY I'D EVER HEARD. From UNITRD STATES to ISRAEL 12 pts. coz iam in USA right now. Maybe see you soon in athens.
From Israel Ohayon, MALTA
Added 19:34:54 2005-10-19
I fell in love with two things,your voice and your song,Kol Ha Kavod Shiri.
From Lala, GERMANY
Added 13:34:39 2005-8-28
this song was great.the best song this year.12 points to israel!!! xD
From audrey egan, IRELAND
Added 11:57:11 2005-8-13
i am looking for a picture of the dress worn by the israel entry
shiri eurovision 2005
From Mystery, AUSTRALIA
Added 10:31:13 2005-6-19
I can't believe this song didn't win. It sounded amazing and Shiri looked amazing so why did it only get 4th? 4th is good but 1st would've been more suited to this entry. i can't believe a song as childish as "my number one" took out the contest : (
From AMD, AUSTRALIA
Added 10:24:23 2005-6-19
This song was by far the best entry in years for israel eversince DIVA. The singer was beautiful, as her voice and I strongly feel this song deserved to win more than the actual winner!
From Diogo, PORTUGAL
Added 21:14:33 2005-6-11
Hello
I love the music of Israel, the estuary of the Shiri and my best of music of 2005.
I wait that they are cleft many cd's of the Shiri.
From amy, UNITED KINGDOM
Added 10:59:42 2005-6-10
just keep listening to the song charlie, honey. after you keep listening to the song, hebrew is not really that hard to sing to. the mouth movement are all very similar to english.
ive learnt the whole herew version on the cd and it didnt take long at all. thinking about singing it in 'the show'? thatd be ace.
From Lachlan, AUSTRALIA
Added 2:50:25 2005-6-9
I underestimated this song. It was performed so well. She has a beautifel song and the backup singers (which is where you can somtimes win or lose on a song) where fantastic. Totally deserved of its finishing position.
From Berliner, LITHUANIA
Added 13:11:6 2005-5-30
This was one of the best performances this year. The song was very very warm and Shiri looked really elegant. Love u Israel!
From GluttoN, LITHUANIA
Added 20:58:47 2005-5-28
You were the most beautiful women,teh song was the wonderful and the dress was very nice...you had to win:)my heat will be your
:
From shqipja, KOSOVA
Added 23:4:44 2005-5-27
She was the best one
From Charlotte, UNITED KINGDOM
Added 19:19:26 2005-5-27
Can anyone tell me where I could get a copy of the dots (music score) to this song? Or the backing music? A reply would be much appreciated, as I would luuuurve to learn to sing this song! Thankyou xxx
From Charlotte, UNITED KINGDOM
Added 22:17:45 2005-5-25
I absolutely luuurve this song! Its fabulous! It was definitely Miss Israel this contest, she is the most beautiful women! I really admire her, and I wish that she had done better than Greece .. they SHOULD NOT HAVE WON! Shiri's dress was stunning, and I think that she has a beautiful voice.
Well done Israel!!!
From Tom, ISRAEL
Added 20:35:15 2005-5-25
Perfect.
Need I say more?
From tammin, AUSTRALIA
Added 8:8:56 2005-5-25
she's absolutely beautiful, and the ballad was breathtaking.
it's wonderful to see someone sing their native tongue. Hebrew sounds beautiful <33
From Francesca, MALTA
Added 17:43:45 2005-5-24
ALL I CAN say about this sond is WOOOWW!! u managed to steal our hearts! u have such a beautiful voice and song !! well done ,u wer one of the countries who desevred the 1st place!! xxxxxxxx KEEP IT UP!we love you
From tumas, LITHUANIA
Added 15:14:16 2005-5-24
yeah, shiri's voice is really wonderful and the song was inspiring , too.in my opinion she was the most professional singer this year.
From HILLA, ISRAEL
Added 14:3:28 2005-5-24
shivering!!
omg!! she was perfect splendid wonderful excellent amazing astonishing dumbfounding
From savina, BULGARIA
Added 13:15:32 2005-5-24
that shiri maymon is so beautiful!!!
From european_serb, --
Added 0:53:57 2005-5-24
...a nice song, and pretty face that she has... but she was more like a robot on the stage. Sorry!
From noname, ISRAEL
Added 21:9:0 2005-5-23
Eurovision song contest became so mediacore and political, israel should not participate anymore (like italy stopped). What amazes me is the fact that Israel, who does not have any POLITICAL FRIENDS, reached the 4th position anyway. In a contrary, Greece, with a stupid childish song, needed her neighbours to win (12 points from ALL OF THE, including Cyprus, of course, who should be banned for that fact).
ISRAEL IS A EUROVISION EMPIRE, AGAINTS ALL EUROPEAN ATTEMPT TO IGNORE IT'S SONGS: 3 TIMES FIRST, TWICE SECOND, ONCE THIRD, TWICE 4TH, TWICE 5TH (10 OUT OF 28 PARTICIPANTS) - EAT YOUR HEART EUROPE!
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Israel
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