To the disappointment of many Dutchies, Mia Nicolai and Dion Cooper, representing the Netherlands, will not be performing in the Grand Final of the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest in Liverpool.
The Dutch duo didn’t get enough votes from the audience for their song Burning Daylight during yesterday’s semi-final and have been eliminated from the competition, the NOS reports
A long journey for the Dutch duo
Nevertheless, the Dutch artists tell NOS: “We go home with our heads held high,” after the long journey they had. “I think we just had a very difficult semi-final, it was a very strong pot. For the first time, we only had televoting and no jury voting,” says Cooper.
The result? Unfortunately, it will be the first time in eight years that the Netherlands won’t be singing on stage during the big final.
Cooper goes on to tell the NOS “It is what it is. It’s still a bit of a bummer, we really wanted to be part of it, also because we had a very crazy ride and overcame obstacles. So I’m really disappointed, but that’s just part of it and I’m proud of what we’ve done.”
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Yep, it was one hell of an Efteling-esque ride for the pair, with the competition consisting of ups and downs for the duo. In the run-up to the Eurovision Song Contest, Nicolai and Cooper received criticism after a few failed performances.
Don’t worry though, you’ll still have plenty of artists to vote for with still 26 dazzling countries taking to the stage this Saturday.
Will you be watching the final this weekend? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below!