Latvia in the Eurovision Song Contest 2002

Eurovision Song Contest 2002
Country	Latvia
National selection
Selection process	Eirodziesma 2002
Selection date(s)	2 March 2002
Selected entrant	Marie N
Selected song	"I Wanna"
Finals performance
Final result	1st, 176 points
Latvia in the Eurovision Song Contest
◄2001 • 2002 • 2003►

Latvia was represented by Marie N, with the song '"I Wanna", at the 2002 Eurovision Song Contest which took place on 25 May in Tallinn, Estonia. "I Wanna" was chosen as the Latvian entry at the national final, Eirodziesma, on 2 March and went on to bring Latvia victory in only their third Eurovision participation. This was at the time the shortest time lapse between first participation and first victory of any country not present at the inaugural contest of 1956; however it was bettered in 2004 when Ukraine won the contest at their second attempt. Latvia had originally been relegated from the 2002 contest following a bad result in 2001, but were reprieved when Portugal opted out.

Final

Eirodziesma was organised by broadcaster LTV and held at the Olympic Centre in Ventspils, hosted by Ija Circene and Ēriks Niedra. Fifteen songs took part with the winner chosen by televoting. All songs were presented in English. The winning song was billed on the night as "I Wonna", but was changed to the more aesthetic "I Wanna" before going to Tallinn.^[1]

At Eurovision

On the night of the final Marie N performed 23rd in the running order, following Slovenia and preceding Lithuania. Rather than the song itself, the exceptionally slick and memorable stage presentation and choreography of Marie N and her backers, combined with the advantageous late performance draw, is largely credited for the victory. When voting started the contest quickly turned into a two-horse race between Latvia and Malta with voting always very tight between the two. Malta held a marginal lead over the first half before Latvia gradually edged ahead, finally claiming victory with 176 points to Malta's 164. "I Wanna" picked up maximum 12s from Estonia, Germany, Israel, Lithuania and Spain, with only Romania failing to award the song any points at all. The 12 points from the Latvian televote were awarded to Estonia.^[2]

Points Awarded to Latvia

Points Awarded by Latvia^[2]

12 points	Estonia
10 points	Russia
8 points	Cyprus
7 points	Malta
6 points	Lithuania
5 points	United Kingdom
4 points	Sweden
3 points	Israel
2 points	France
1 point	Switzerland

See also

• Latvia in the Eurovision Song Contest
• Eurovision Song Contest 2002

References

Latvia in the Eurovision Song Contest   Participation 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016   Artists 2000s Brainstorm Arnis Mednis Marie N F.L.Y. Fomins and Kleins Walters and Kazha Vocal Group Cosmos Bonaparti.lv Pirates of the Sea Intars Busulis 2010s Aisha Musiqq Anmary PeR Aarzemnieki Aminata   Songs 2000s "My Star" "Too Much" "I Wanna" "Hello From Mars" "Dziesma par laimi" "The War Is Not Over" "I Hear Your Heart" "Questa notte" "Wolves of the Sea" "Probka" 2010s "What For?" "Angel in Disguise" "Beautiful Song" "Here We Go" "Cake to Bake" "Love Injected" (Note: Entries scored out are when Latvia did not compete)