About Belgium...

2006 Result
History (1956 to 2005)
This year's entry
What I predicted...
What you thought...
What actually happened...
What the bookies thought...

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2006 Result

Points in Semi Final: 69
Position in Semi Final: 12th

Points in Final: Failed to qualify
Position in Final: Failed to qualify
More about the 2006 result for Belgium

2007 Contest: Must compete in Semi Final

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History (1956 to 2005)

Belgium's previous appearances: 47 year(s) out of 50 [note]
Years participated: 1956-1993; 1995-1996; 1998-2000; 2002- [note]
Best result: 1st (1986)

One of the original Eurovision entrants, Belgium had to wait thirty years before scoring its first victory in 1986. It did so with probably the most nauseating Eurovision winner ever, 'J'aime la vie', performed with horrific gusto by 13-year-old Sandra Kim. Watching the 1986 Contest as a 12-year-old, I was staggered that what I felt was the weakest song in the whole show had triumphed, beating superior efforts by Switzerland's Daniella Simons and the fabulous Doris Dragović for Yugoslavia - two decades later, my feelings haven't changed. Fortunately, the EBU has since decreed that all Eurovision entrants must be aged 16 or over, while those who are underage now have their own Junior Eurovision to take part in.

Looking at Belgium's record since 1986, the country may have to wait another thirty years before its next victory. Following its Eurovision win, no further top ten places were forthcoming until 1998, when Melanie Cohl managed 6th place with the likeable 'Dis oui'. However, this flash of success was not sustained, with Vanessa Chinitor only managing a mid-table 12th in 1999. The following year, Natalie Sorce sang the unfortunately titled 'Envie de vivre', or 'Desire to live'; the song wasn't that terrible, but by the end of her performance most of Europe had certainly lost the 'Envie de vivre', and it finished last with just 2 points. 2001's song, 'Sister', did better, but even that stalled in 13th place. Urban Trad's excellent result with 'Sanomi' in 2003 certainly gave Belgium a welcome boost, not only coming within a whisker of winning, but also affording the country its first top five placing since Sandra Kim's 1986 victory. It was seemingly a blip, however, with the highly-tipped Xandee and '1 life' - directly qualified for the Final - causing one of the shocks of 2004 by finishing 22nd with just 7 points. Nevertheless, it was the year's bestselling song in Flanders (and a hit elsewhere in Europe), once again proving the 'Gina G rule' that a chart hit does not necessarily translate into Eurovision glory.

Unfortunately for Belgium, Xandee's poor result meant that the country had to compete in the 2005 Semi Final to stand a chance of appearing in Saturday's Contest proper. Its chosen song, 'Le grand soir' by Nuno Resende, was an old-fashioned French ballad that most people wrote off from the start. Sadly, the lack of enthusiasm for the song was well-placed, Nuno limping to 22nd place despite a stunning vocal performance on the night.

Of course, Belgium is unusual in that two separate broadcasters have responsibility for choosing the country's Eurovision entries, with French-language RTBF and Flemish VRT taking part in alternate years. Though Belgium's overall record is not terribly impressive, it does disguise the contrasting success of RTBF and VRT, with the former being responsible for almost all the country's best results, including 'J'aime la vie', 'Dis oui' and 'Sanomi'. Indeed, you have to go back to 1977 to find the last occasion that a Flemish entry finished in the top ten at Eurovision. 2006 is VRT's turn, and with Belgium having to take part in the Semi Final the omens hardly look promising. However, the broadcaster has gone for a very high profile national selection including a number of 'big names', so hopes are high that Belgium might nevertheless achieve a decent result.
Get 'The Eurovision Song Contest: The Offical History' at Amazon.co.uk

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This year's entry

Position in Semi Final draw: 7
Position in Final draw: Failed to qualify

What I said prior to the Semi Final:
"Belgium's Eurosong 2006 selection process seemed to go on for weeks, using a bewildering combination of judges, press juries, radio juries and televoting to whittle down the initial 28 contenders. Happily, it must go down as one of the most impressive national selections any country has held in recent years, with an excellent array of high quality contemporary-sounding songs, and a particularly rich mix of genres including pop, dance, rap, rock, country, and even a flamenco-flavoured song performed in Spanish. In the end, however, the song that everyone had predicted would win right from the start did just that - 'Je t'adore', performed by the established Belgian singer Kate Ryan.

Apart from Kate herself, the song has little to mark it out as specifically Belgian - written and composed by Kate herself in collaboration with Swedish songwriters Niklas Bergwall and Niclas Kings, it sounds like the kind of Swedish Melodifestivalen song that Shirley Clamp or Linda Bengtzing would be happy to call their own. Indeed, Bergwall and Kings have described 'Je t'adore' as a mix of Swedish schlager and Belgian club music. Thus, one could describe 'Je t'adore' as being to schlager what 'turbofolk' band Atomik Harmonik (3rd in the 2006 EMA) is to traditional Slovenian music; hence, my coining of a new definition to describe Kate Ryan's song - 'turboschlager'.

I do think Belgium made the right choice, though - 'Je t'adore' is a very catchy and upbeat song with a really strong ending, benefiting from a surprisingly strong live vocal performance by Kate, and a fairly effective onstage show. In many ways, I feel it has much in common with last year's Greek winner - a well-presented modern pop-dance track of the kind that might well make an immediate impact on European televoters, and that can easily be imagined blasting out of radios across the continent. Broadcaster VRT is reportedly aiming for the best ever Flemish result in 2006 - in my view, something that certainly isn't beyond the realms of possibility. "

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What I predicted...

My prediction for Semi Final: 1st to 3rd
My prediction for Final: Definite qualifier; 3rd to 5th, possible winner
See all my predictions for the 2006 Semi Final
See all my predictions for the 2006 Final

What I predicted prior to the Semi Final:
"Well, this is going to qualify isn't it? The only question is whether Kate Ryan is going to win the Semi Final. However, as the first definite qualifier - a hefty seven songs in - she must have a very good chance.

Of course, in being a very contemporary pop-dance song weighed down by the weight of Belgian expectation it is not surprising that some people have questioned whether Kate might do a Xandee - otherwise known as doing a Marlain or a Corinna. Fortunately, unlike those who have flopped before her, Kate has the advantage of being able to sing live (as long as she isn't trying to dance too vigorously at the same time), and even if she does make a mess of it the Swedish backing singers will surely come to the rescue. Equally, she is unlikely to wear an outfit quite as unflattering as the one sported by Xandee in Istanbul.

Talking of unflattering outfits (but not talking of flopping), I can't help feeling that the decision to feature Kate in a skimpy bikini in her preview video was an ill-advised one. Now, I don't make a habit of looking at boobs, you'll understand, but surely if you're going to draw undue attention to someone waving her breasts around it's best that there's actually something to look at? :) No offence meant Kate - I love you and I love your song! [hugs from Graham]

Assuming Kate gives a strong enough performance to make it through to the Final she will certainly be one of the contenders for victory. However, she may have her work cut out seeing off Bosnia, Greece and Romania, particularly if Belgium gets a bad draw in the Final - straight after a fantastic performance from Greece or Romania, for instance."
Want an alternative prediction? See Simon Hylands' 'Je t'adore, Eurovision!' site

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What you thought...

View the final leader board

In the run up to the Contest, 1,721 visitors to this site awarded points to their favourite songs in the Soult.com Eurovision Jury Vote 2006, voting as a representative of their own country's 'jury'. The votes awarded by representatives of each country were totalled, with each of the 38 participating countries (plus the 'Rest of the World') then awarding points - 12, 10, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 - based on the overall voting preference of its representatives. The points awarded to the entry from Belgium are shown in the tables below:

Points awarded to Belgium overall:
AL	5	HR	3	GR	5	MK	0	PL	12	ES	8
AD	12	CY	5	IS	5	MT	10	PT	8	SE	12
AM	0	DK	5	IE	12	MD	0	RO	8	CH	0
BY	0	EE	8	IL	12	MC	2	RU	0	TR	1
BE	X	FI	6	LV	1	NL	12	CS	4	UA	3
BA	3	FR	10	LT	8	NO	10	SI	5	UK	10
BG	0	DE	5	WO	4	Last updated: 18 May 2006 Next scheduled update: None
Total points: 214, from 31/39 juries
Position: 3 out of 37

Points awarded to Belgium in the Semi Final:
AL	8	HR	6	GR	7	MK	1	PL	12	ES	10
AD	12	CY	10	IS	6	MT	12	PT	10	SE	12
AM	4	DK	8	IE	12	MD	0	RO	12	CH	4
BY	4	EE	8	IL	12	MC	6	RU	0	TR	6
BE	X	FI	8	LV	5	NL	12	CS	8	UA	6
BA	8	FR	12	LT	12	NO	10	SI	8	UK	12
BG	0	DE	7	WO	7	Last updated: 18 May 2006 Next scheduled update: None
Total points: 297, from 35/39 juries
Position: 1 out of 23

Points awarded to Belgium in the Final:
AL	5	HR	3	GR	5	MK	3	PL	12	ES	8
AD	12	CY	5	IS	6	MT	10	PT	8	SE	12
AM	1	DK	5	IE	12	MD	0	RO	8	CH	0
BY	2	EE	8	IL	12	MC	3	RU	0	TR	3
BE	X	FI	6	LV	3	NL	12	CS	4	UA