Dami Im Denied Eurovision Victory (Again), After Jamala’s Controversial “1944” Is Ruled Eligible Winner

The selection of Ukraine as the winner of 2016’s Eurovision has been a controversial one – and not simply because Aussies felt our runner up Dami Im was robbed.

First, Russian officials expressed outrage that Jamala’s seemingly political tune “1944” (dedicated to Crimean refugees) had taken the top prize, suggesting its lyrics were in breach of the contest’s own rules.

(Specifically: “no lyrics, speeches, gestures of a political or similar nature shall be permitted during the Eurovision Song Contest.”)

However, some critics– and Dami die-hards – were delighted to discover footage recently of Jamala performing “1944” (in her original language) in 2015, thinking that it would be enough to have her disqualified.

Not so much.

In an official statement, the European Broadcasting Union dashed the hopes of Dami’s fans by saying Ukraine’s entry “was eligible to compete”.

You can read their full reasoning below.

Im’s manager David Champion had this to say to The Daily Telegraph about the controversy: “For the Ukraine this is much more about national pride and hope and I think it’s a bit un-Australian to bring them down and we don’t want to be a bad loser.”

Dami’s song “Sound of Silence” debuted at #5 on the ARIA Charts this week though, so there’s that.

Photo: Eurovision Song Contest / YouTube.