HaSheket SheNish'ar

Israel was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2005 with the song "" , written by Pini Aaronbayev, Eyal Shachar, and Ben Green, and performed by Shiri Maimon. The Israeli participating broadcaster, the Israel Broadcasting Authority (IBA), selected its entry through the national final Kdam Eurovision 2005. The competition took place on 2 March 2005 and featured fourteen entries. "" performed by Shiri Maimon emerged as the winner after gaining the most points following the combination of votes from five regional juries and a regional televote.

Israel competed in the semi-final of the Eurovision Song Contest which took place on 19 May 2005. Performing during the show in position 7, "" was announced among the top 10 entries of the semi-final and therefore qualified to compete in the final on 21 May. It was later revealed that Israel placed seventh out of the 25 participating countries in the semi-final with 158 points. In the final, Israel performed in position 11 and placed fourth out of the 24 participating countries, scoring 154 points.

Background

Prior to the 2004 contest, the Israel Broadcasting Authority (IBA) had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest representing Israel twenty-six times since its first entry in 1973. It has won the contest on three occasions: in with the song "" by Izhar Cohen and the Alphabeta, in with the song "Hallelujah" by Milk and Honey, in with the song "" by Dana International. In , "" performed by David D'Or failed to qualify from the semi-final.

As part of its duties as participating broadcaster, IBA organises the selection of its entry in the Eurovision Song Contest and broadcasts the event in the country. The broadcaster confirmed its participation in the 2005 contest on 20 September 2004. In 2005, IBA opted to organise a national final with several entries. The competition was planned to feature a new format with four shows taking place in different cities across Israel, however, only one final was ultimately held.

Before Eurovision

Kdam Eurovision 2005

Kdam Eurovision 2005 was the national final format organised by IBA to select its entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2005. The competition took place on 2 March 2005 at the Neve Ilan television studios in Jerusalem, hosted by Moran Atias and Didi Harrari and was broadcast on Channel 1 as well as online via ''iba.org.il/eurovil''. The national final was watched by 376,000 viewers in Israel with a market share of 22.1%.

Competing entries

IBA directly invited fourteen artists to participate in the competition. Thirteen of the competing acts were announced on 26 December 2004, while the fourteenth act, the Elayev Family, was announced on 14 January 2005. The artists were required to submit their entries by the deadline on 31 January 2005, and the songs were presented prior to the competition during a special radio programme on Reshet Gimmel on 15 February 2005.

Final

The final took place on 2 March 2005. The winner, "" performed by Shiri Maimon, was selected by a 50/50 combination of votes from five regional juries and a regional televote. In addition to the performances of the competing entries, show host Moran Atias together with Sassi Keshet and the Jerusalem Boys Choir performed as the opening act, while Harel Skaat, Izhar Cohen (who won Eurovision for Israel in 1978) and Ruslana (who won Eurovision for ) performed as the interval acts.

At Eurovision

According to Eurovision rules, all nations with the exceptions of the host country, the " Big Four" (France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom), and the ten highest placed finishers in the are required to qualify from the semi-final on 19 May 2005 in order to compete for the final on 21 May 2005; the top ten countries from the semi-final progress to the final. On 22 March 2005, an allocation draw was held which determined the running order for the semi-final and Israel was set to perform in position 7, following the entry from and before the entry from . At the end of the semi-final, Israel was announced as having finished in the top 10 and subsequently qualifying for the grand final. It was later revealed that Israel placed seventh in the semi-final, receiving a total of 158 points. The draw for the running order for the final was done by the presenters during the announcement of the ten qualifying countries during the semi-final and Israel was drawn to perform in position 11, following the entry from and before the entry from . Israel placed fourth in the final, scoring 154 points.

The semi-final received a market share of 22.5% in Israel with a peak of 31.1%, while the final received a market share of 39.5% in Israel with a peak of 47.9%. Both shows were televised live on Channel 1. IBA appointed Dana Herman as its spokesperson to announce the Israeli votes during the final.

Voting

Below is a breakdown of points awarded to Israel and awarded by Israel in the semi-final and grand final of the contest. The nation awarded its 12 points to in the semi-final and the final of the contest.

Points awarded to Israel

Points awarded by Israel

References

{{Eurovision Song Contest 2005

2005
Countries in the Eurovision Song Contest 2005
Eurovision