About Estonia...

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: 28
Position in Semi Final: 18th

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

2007 Contest: Must compete in Semi Final

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History (1956 to 2005)

Estonia's previous appearances: 11 year(s) out of 50 [note]
Years participated: 1994; 1996- [note]
Best result: 1st (2001)

Estonia has one of the best records of any of the east European newcomers that have appeared at Eurovision since 1993 - indeed, only Estonia (in 2001), Latvia (in 2002) and Ukraine (in 2004) have so far managed to win. Estonia got off to a terrible start when it scored just 2 points in 1994, spared last place only because Lithuania's début scored nothing at all. After missing the following year's contest due to relegation, Estonia bounced back in 1996 with a much improved 5th place, the start of a rather impressive run of results. With an 8th place in 1997, 12th in 1998 and 6th in 1999, it was surely only a matter of time before Estonia won the contest. Ines, with 'Once in a lifetime', was tipped for success in 2000, but had to be content with 4th.

When Estonia did win it caught everyone by surprise, the energetic 'Everybody', by Tanel Padar and Dave Benton, storming to a shock victory in 2001. Estonia came close to winning again the following year, but had to settle for 3rd with Sahlene's 'Runaway'. After such a good record, it's little surprise that 2003's disappointing 21st place for Ruffus and 'Eighties coming back' provoked much consternation and gnashing of teeth. In truth, it was a fantastic song, and while Estonia's Baltic neighbours gave it short shrift, the UK (3 points) and Ireland (8 points) gave it the appreciation it deserved. Perhaps Ruffus, with their retro outfits and sharp lyrics, were just too ironic for most Eurovision televoters.

Whatever the reason, Estonia found itself in the Semi Final in 2004, where the unusual 'Tii' - performed in an obscure Estonian dialect by a sackcloth-clad, Baltic version of Girls Aloud - finished a tantalising 12th. Taking part in the Semi Final again in 2005, Suntribe's 'Let's get loud' marked a further deterioration in form, ending up a distant 20th. With Estonia reverting to the national selection process, involving a jury of international experts, that brought it earlier successes (including the 2001 victory), hopes are high that 2006 might represent an improvement in the country's Eurovision fortunes.
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: 21
Position in Final draw: Failed to qualify

What I said prior to the Semi Final:
"Well, never one to be predictable, the international jury selected 23-year-old Swedish 'Fame Factory' winner Sandra Oxenryd and her song 'Through my window' as Estonia's entry for 2006, narrowly ahead of the 2000 Estonian representative Ines and her highly fancied song 'Iseendale'.

To be honest, the overall standard of this year's Eurolaul contenders was fairly uninspiring - Ines' song (in its lovely acoustic version, at least) was possibly the strongest of the lot, but there was nothing that really stood out in this year's Eurolaul as certain to secure Estonia's ticket to the Eurovision Final. Hence, 'Through my window' is pleasant but innocuous, doing nothing to offend but hardly exciting the senses either. Interestingly, the song's Swedish performer is not the only thing that it has in common with Estonia's 2002 entry, 'Through my window' having been penned by the same team who wrote both Sahlene's 'Runaway' and Ine's 'Once in a lifetime' (Estonia 2000). Indeed, with its chugging riff and singalong chorus the song strays very little from the formula that brought high placings for its predecessors. Whether this formula will still wash in 2006 remains to be seen, but the song IS a grower, and my initial hunch is that 'Through my window' is a song that may well be more popular among the public at large than among the fans - rather like 'Everybody' indeed, a runaway victor in the 2001 Contest but seemingly despised by the fans, with less than 3% of Soult.com Eurovision visitors voting it their "favourite Eurovision winner of the 00s". However, I think Tobson in Euroland rather sums it all up when he suggests that "having a good entry, when you were so close to having a brilliant one, is always a disappointment".

Possibly more serious than its similiarity with previous Estonian entries, others have observed - reasonably enough, I think - that the song's melody has more than a whiff of Abba's "Does your mother know" about it, prompting the usual, often quite aggressive, cries of "Plagiat! Plagiat!" (why use an English word when a French one will do...). With the Slovene entry also being questioned on plagiarism grounds, it seems that no Eurovision is complete without allegations of copying. However, I'm not always convinced about the motives that stimulate these claims - I can't help feeling that often they are more to do with sour grapes (fans being huffy about their favourite song not winning), rather than genuine concerns about plagiarism. Perhaps a little more magnanimity and a little less hysteria would do us all good."

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What I predicted...

My prediction for Semi Final: 10th to 12th
My prediction for Final: Possible qualifier
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:
"With Carola performing 20th in the Semi Final and Sandra 21st, it may not be the best draw to have one Swede following another. However, I think the songs are sufficiently different not to dent Sandra's chances of following her compatriot into the Final. 'Through my window' does little for me, I'm afraid - it's just too Estonia by numbers - but it could yet be one that defies the polls and makes it through to Saturday's show. "
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 Estonia are shown in the tables below:

Points awarded to Estonia overall:
AL	0	HR	0	GR	0	MK	0	PL	0	ES	0
AD	0	CY	0	IS	0	MT	0	PT	1	SE	2
AM	0	DK	0	IE	0	MD	0	RO	0	CH	0
BY	0	EE	X	IL	0	MC	0	RU	0	TR	0
BE	3	FI	3	LV	0	NL	0	CS	0	UA	0
BA	0	FR	0	LT	0	NO	0	SI	3	UK	0
BG	0	DE	0	WO	0	Last updated: 18 May 2006 Next scheduled update: None
Total points: 12, from 5/39 juries
Position: 29 out of 37

Points awarded to Estonia in the Semi Final:
AL	0	HR	2	GR	0	MK	2	PL	0	ES	0
AD	0	CY	0	IS	1	MT	0	PT	6	SE	5
AM	3	DK	2	IE	0	MD	0	RO	0	CH	0
BY	1	EE	X	IL	0	MC	0	RU	0	TR	0
BE	6	FI	6	LV	0	NL	0	CS	0	UA	0
BA	3	FR	0	LT	5	NO	2	SI	6	UK	1
BG	0	DE	0	WO	0	Last updated: 18 May 2006 Next scheduled update: None
Total points: 51, from 15/39 juries
Position: 15 out of 23

Points awarded to Estonia in the Final:
AL	0	HR	0	GR	0	MK	0	PL	0	ES	0
AD	0	CY	0	IS	0	MT	0	PT	0	SE	0
AM	0	DK	0	IE	0	MD	0	RO	0	CH	0
BY	0	EE	X	IL	0	MC	0	RU	0	TR	0
BE	0	FI	0	LV	0	NL	0	CS	0	UA	0
BA	0	FR