Tere Tallinn!

The small capital of Tallinn was the proud host of the 2002 Eurovision Song Contest. The rules for the 2002 contest stated that only 22 countries would be able to participate, but the European Broadcasting Union later changed this into 24 countries being allowed into the competition.

Israel accepted the invitation as the first runner-up in the pool of countries that were initially doomed to stay at home. Portugal, the second runner-up declined to go to Tallinn, so Latvia was able to enter the 2002 Eurovision Song Contest. This was a rather peculiar situation, since Latvia ended up winning the whole contest in the end!

About the winner

There was no clear favorite among the 24 countries competing. Sweden, Germany and the host country Estonia were tipped as winners, but it was Marie N (Marija Naumova) who was able to hold the trophy in her hands.

Marie N had already tried to enter the 2000 and 2001 Eurovision Song Contests, but narrowly missed out both times. Her 2002 entry I Wanna had a stunning dress change gimmick as Marie started her song wearing a white suit - only to end it wearing a sexy red dress! This was the start of many more intriguing dress changes in the following Eurovision Song Contests.

However, Marie N's I Wanna didn't prove to be a big success in the European charts as the single of it was only released months after the Latvian victory.

Facts & figures

• The tragic figure of the 2002 Eurovision Song Contest was the Danish singer Malene. Seen by many fans as one of the favorites to win, she ended up in the last position with just seven points in total. That was a severe blow to the Danish nation who won the contest in 2000 and who came 2nd in 2001, but would miss out on the 2003 competition in Riga.