After an online voting and jury meeting, Ukraine has picked Darina Krasnovetska from Vinnytsia to be their 2018 Junior Eurovision Representative!
She will sing “Say Love” in Minsk
Darina was not the winner of the online voting favourite as she came third behind Kain Rivers and Alexander Balabanov. However, the 5-member jury picked her to fly the Ukrainian flag in Minsk. She will sing the song “Say Love” and hope to give Ukraine their second victory at the contest!
Because of last minute confirmation following intended withdrawal, Ukraine did not hold their usual televised show but used online and jury votes instead. In total 10 acts participated in the search.
Ukraine in the Junior Eurovision Song Contest
Ukraine first participated at Junior Eurovision Song Contest in 2006, and participated every year since. The country also hosted the contest in both 2009 and 2013 in their capital city of Kyiv. Besides, Ukraine also won the contest in 2012, courtesy of Anastasia Petryk and her entry “Nebo”. Furthermore, Ukraine has two runner-up finishes to their name. These were earned by Viktoria Petryk, Anastasia’s older sister, in 2008 and Sofia Tarasova on home soil in 2013.
Despite strong initial results, Ukraine’s fortunes at Junior Eurovision has dipped slightly in recent years. In fact, in 2015 and 2016, Ukraine missed the top 10 for two consecutive years with Anna Trincher placing 11th and Sofia Rol placing 14th respectively. Anastasiya Baginska was more successful in Tbilisi last year, with “Don’t Stop” finishing in 7th place. Ukraine had initially planned to withdraw from this year’s show but later confirmed their presence.
You can read about the country’s Junior Eurovision journey in our feature here.
Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2018
Belarus’s capital Minsk will be the host of the 2018 edition of Junior Eurovision. This is the second time the event takes place in the city, that previously hosted it in 2010. A record-breaking 20 countries will participate in Minsk on November 25. Wales and Kazakhstan will both make a debut with Kazakhstan participating for the first time to any Eurovision related event. Furthermore, the contest will also feature three returning countries: France, that last participated in 2004, Azerbaijan that last participated in 2013 and Israel that last participated in 2016. Unfortunately, Cyprus instead confirmed its withdrawal from the competition.
Are you looking forward to Junior Eurovision 2018? Do you like the Ukrainian entry? What is your favourite Ukrainian Junior Eurovision entry so far?
Let us know in the comments section below and on all social media platforms at @ESCXTRA!
Comments on Junior Eurovision: Darina Krasnovetska to Minsk for Ukraine!