As we get ready for the 19th edition of the Junior Eurovision Song Contest to take place on December 19th at La Seine Musicale in Paris, let’s take a look at 19 facts about the contest we’ve all grown to love!
1. Since the show began in 2003, there has been:
- one winning duo (2006)
- two winning groups (2008, 2011)
- five male winners (2003, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2014)
- 10 female winners (2004, 2005, 2012, 2013, 2015-2020)
2. The Netherlands is the only country which has participated in every single contest. Belarus previously held that record alongside them until their withdrawal from the 2021 contest.
3. Since the very first contest in 2003, a total of 278 songs have been performed across 18 contests.
4. Lerika is the only Junior Eurovision participant who has sung for two different countries. In 2012, she represented Moldova with the song “No No”, achieving the country’s best result with 6th place. She returned a year later for Russia, finishing in 4th place with “Sensatsiya”.
5. Denmark and Spain are the only two countries who have never finished outside the top 5 in Junior Eurovision.
Denmark finished in 5th place in 2003 and 2004, and 4th place in 2005. Spain won the contest in 2004, finished in second place in 2003 and 2005, third place in 2019 and 2020 and fourth place in 2006.
6. Georgia holds the record for the most Junior Eurovision wins. Their first win came in 2008 when the group Bzikebi won with their song “Bzz”. Another group, Candy, won for Georgia in 2011 with “Candy Music”. Mariam Mamadashvili is Georgia’s most recent winner, having won with “Mzeo” in 2016.
7. Speaking of Georgia, a total of 10 people by the name of Mariam have taken to the Junior Eurovision stage for the country:
- 2007 – Mariam Romelashvelli
- 2008 – Mariam Kikuashvili and Mariam Tatulashvili (members of “Bzikebi”)
- 2009 – Mariam Bokeria and Mariam Gurgenizde (members of “Princesses”)
- 2010 – Mariam Kakhelishvili
- 2011 – Mariam Gvaladze (member of “Candy”)
- 2013 – Mariam Shavladze and Mariam Samushia (members of “The Smile Shop”)
- 2016 – Mariam Mamadashvili
8. In the 2003, 2004 and 2005 contests, Sweden was represented by a female duo. Each of these duos finished in 15th place.
9. In the 2007 and 2008 contests, 100% of the profits made from each show were donated to UNICEF.
10. Wales and Kazakhstan are the only two countries who have participated in Junior Eurovision but not Eurovision. They also join Belarus in having made their Junior Eurovision debut before their Eurovision debut.
11. A total of eight Junior Eurovision participants have gone on to participate in Eurovision:
- The Tolmachevy Twins – Russia in Junior Eurovision 2006 and Eurovision 2014
- Michele Perniola (Junior Eurovision 2013) and Anita Simoncini (Junior Eurovision 2014) represented San Marino in Eurovision 2015
- O’G3NE – The Netherlands in Junior Eurovision 2007 and Eurovision 2017
- Nevena Božović – Serbia in Junior Eurovision 2007 and Eurovision in 2013 (as part of Moje 3) and again in 2019
- Destiny – Malta in Junior Eurovision 2015 and Eurovision 2021
- Stefania – part of “Kisses” for The Netherlands in Junior Eurovision 2016 and for Greece in Eurovision 2021
12. A total of four countries have unfortunatley finished in last place on their debut – Poland 2003, Albania 2012, Wales 2018 and Germany 2020.
13. The 2018 contest saw the most number of participating countries at 20, whilst the 2012, 2013 and 2020 contests had the lowest number of participating countries at just 12.
14. The highest score ever achieved in Junior Eurovision is 278 points. This was achieved by Viki Gabor from Poland when she won Junior Eurovision 2019 with “Superhero”.
15. North Macedonia holds the record for most 12th place finishes. The country has finished in 12th place in eight out of 15 participations.
Their highest scoring 12th place finish came in 2018 when Marija Spasovska achieved 99 points, with their lowest coming from Marija and Victorija in 2003 when they achieved 19 points.
16. Since the first contest in 2003, a total of 38 countries have participated in Junior Eurovision. The Netherlands hold the record for most number of participations with 19 whilst Switzerland has the least, participating just once in 2004.
17. The 2020 contest, which was hosted from Studio 5 at the TVP Headquarters in Warsaw, is the first and only contest to have been hosted in a television studio.
18. In 2007, the contest was held on December 8th at the Ahoy Arena in Rotterdam, making it the first and only time (so far) the contest had taken place in December.
In 2021, as the Ahoy Arena in Rotterdam played host to Eurovision, the Junior Eurovision Song Contest took place in December again (for a second time).
19. Between 2012 and 2016, the countries that finished in last place were all from the Balkan region of Europe:
- 2012 – Albania
- 2013 – North Macedonia
- 2014 – Croatia
- 2015 – North Macedonia
- 2016 – Serbia
The 19th edition of the Junior Eurovision Song Contest will take place at La Seine Musicale in Paris on December 19th at 16:00 CET. Will you be tuning in?
