Iceland in the Eurovision Song Contest
| Iceland | |
|---|---|
|
|
| Member station | RÚV |
| National selection events | Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins |
| Appearances | |
| Appearances | 26 (23 finals) |
| First appearance | 1986 |
| Best result | 2nd: 1999, 2009 |
| Worst result | Last: 1989, 2001 |
| External links | |
| Iceland's page at Eurovision.tv | |
Iceland has entered the Eurovision Song Contest since their debut in 1986, except for 1998 and 2002 when prevented due to finishing outside qualification places the preceding years.
Contents |
History [edit]
Iceland's best position at the contest is second place, which they have achieved twice: in 1999 when Selma represented Iceland with the song "All Out of Luck", and came second to Sweden's Charlotte Nilsson and in 2009 when Iceland returned to second place, where Jóhanna came second to Norway's Alexander Rybak with the ballad "Is It True?".
In contrast Iceland's worst result is last place, which has been achieved twice to date: In 1989 gave Iceland its first last place, when Daníel Ágúst got nul points for his entry "Það sem enginn sér" and in 2001 when Two Tricky came last for Iceland, receiving just 3 points for their performance of "Angel".
With the introduction of semi-finals in 2004, Iceland automatically qualified for the final that year due to Birgitta's 8th place the previous year. In 2008, Iceland reached the final for the first time since then, when Euroband sang This Is My Life. Up to and including 2012 Iceland has always reached the final since 2008.
Despite these mixed fortunes, Iceland is the second most successful country never to win the contest (behind only Malta).
Sigríður Beinteinsdóttir has participated four times (as a member of a group in 1990 and 1992, as a solo artist in 1994, and as a background vocalist in 2007). Stefán Hilmarsson has participated twice (as a member of a group in 1988 and as a member of a duo 1991), as have Selma Björnsdóttir (1999 and 2005), Eiríkur Hauksson (as a member of a group in 1986 and as a solo artist in 2007) and Jón Jósep Snæbjörnsson (2004 and 2012).
The Icelandic broadcaster for the contest is Ríkisútvarpið (RÚV).
Contestants [edit]
- XX on the semi-finals denotes auto-qualification. This could be the result of one of the following two reasons; if a country had won the previous year, they did not have to compete in the semi-finals the following year. The other reason being that back in 2004-2007, the top ten countries who were not members of the big four did not have to compete in the semi finals the following year. If, for example, Germany and France placed inside the top ten with Spain and the United Kingdom finishing after 15th place, the countries who placed 11th and 12th were advanced to the following year's grand final along with the rest of the top ten countries.
- XX on the finals denotes an unsuccessful attempt at qualifying to the final.
Voting history (1986-2012) [edit]
As of 2012 Iceland has given the most points to the following:
| Rank | Country | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Denmark |
159 |
| 2 |  Sweden |
136 |
| 3 |  Norway |
112 |
| 4 |  France |
84 |
| 5 |  Finland |
73 |
as of 2012 Iceland has received the most points from the following:
| Rank | Country | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sweden |
102 |
| 2 | Norway |
98 |
| 3 | Denmark |
96 |
| 4 |  United Kingdom |
66 |
| 5 |  Portugal |
58 |
NOTE: The totals in the above tables include only points awarded in Eurovision finals, not the semi-finals.
Since introducing the semi-finals in 2004 until 2012 [edit]
As of 2012 Iceland has given the most points to the following:
| Rank | Country | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Denmark |
86 |
| 2 | Finland |
71 |
| 3 | Sweden |
65 |
| 4 | Norway |
56 |
| 5 |  Ukraine |
30 |
| 6 |  Estonia |
29 |
| 7 |  Hungary |
26 |
| France |
26 | |
 Greece |
26 | |
| 8 | Portugal |
25 |
As of 2012 Iceland has received the most points from the following:
| Rank | Country | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Norway |
73 |
| 2 | Denmark |
70 |
| 3 | Finland |
67 |
| 4 | Sweden |
48 |
| 5 | Hungary |
42 |
| 6 | Portugal |
38 |
| 7 |  Spain |
37 |
| 8 | Estonia |
32 |
| 9 |  Lithuania |
30 |
| 10 | Ukraine |
29 |
NOTE: The tables with points from 2004 include points awarded in both finals and semi-finals where the highest point from the final/semi-final is picked.
Commentators and spokespersons [edit]
 |
This section does not cite any references or sources. (March 2012) |
| Year(s) | Commentators | Spokesperson |
|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Þorgeir Ástvaldsson | Guðrún Skúladóttir |
| 1987 | Kolbrún Halldórsdóttir | |
| 1988 | Hermann Gunnarsson | |
| 1989 | Arthúr Björgvin Bollason | Erla Björk Skúladóttir |
| 1990 | Árni Snævarr | |
| 1991 | Sigríður Pétursdóttir | |
| 1992 | Árni Snævarr | Guðrún Skúladóttir |
| 1993 | Jakob Frímann Magnússon | |
| 1994 | Sigríður Arnardóttir | |
| 1995 | Áslaug Dóra Eyjólfsdóttir | |
| 1996 | Svanhildur Konráðsdóttir | |
| 1997 | ||
| 1998 | Páll Óskar Hjálmtýsson | Iceland did not participate |
| 1999 | Gísli Marteinn Baldursson | Áslaug Dóra Eyjólfsdóttir |
| 2000 | Ragnheiður Elín Clausen | |
| 2001 | Eva María Jónsdóttir | |
| 2002 | Logi Bergmann Eiðsson | Iceland did not participate |
| 2003 | Gísli Marteinn Baldursson | Eva María Jónsdóttir |
| 2004 | Sigrún Ósk Kristjánsdóttir | |
| 2005 | Ragnhildur Steinunn Jónsdóttir | |
| 2006 | Sigmar Guðmundsson | |
| 2007 | ||
| 2008 | Brynja Þorgeirsdóttir | |
| 2009 | Þóra Tómasdóttir | |
| 2010 | Jóhanna Guðrún Jónsdóttir | |
| 2011 | Hrafnhildur Halldórsdóttir | Ragnhildur Steinunn Jónsdóttir |
| 2012 | Matthías Matthíasson | |
| 2013 | Felix Bergsson | María Sigrún Hilmarsdóttir |
References [edit]
External links [edit]
- Points to and from Iceland eurovisioncovers.co.uk
- Iceland 2011 Tirydou Finales Nationales
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