Austria greets Olympic champion with hugs and roses after winning Eurovision
Austrian fans gave classically trained singer JJ a rapturous welcome at Vienna airport on Sunday after he won the 69th Eurovision Song Contest with "Wasted Love."
As he walked through the door, hundreds of fans cheered, some playing his song, and others surrounded the new star, hugging him and asking for autographs.
The 24-year-old countertenor , whose winning song combines multi-octave operatic vocals with a techno edge, and who also sings at the Vienna State Opera, held his trophy in one hand and a large bouquet of roses in the other. He smiled, wiped away tears, and told the crowd, "This victory is for you."
JJ , whose full name is Johannes Pietsch, was Austria 's third Eurovision winner , following bearded drag queen Conchita Wurst in 2014 and Udo Jürgens in 1966.
"This is beyond my wildest dreams, it's crazy," the singer said as he received the microphone-shaped glass Eurovision trophy after his victory in the Swiss city of Basel on Saturday night.
On Sunday night, he told reporters in Vienna , "I don't think you realize you've achieved it until you're on your deathbed."
Austrian President Alexander van der Bellen celebrated JJ in a video posted on X.
"What a success! What a voice! What a spectacle !" he exclaimed. "All of Austria is happy."
Chancellor Christian Stoecker wrote on X: "What a great success — my warmest congratulations on winning #ESC2025! JJ is writing Austrian music history today."
The Vienna State Opera also expressed its delight at the victory . "From The Magic Flute to winning the Song Contest, it's in some ways a story that can only happen in Austria ," opera director Bogdan Roscic told the Austrian news agency APA.
Several Austrian cities were quick to express interest in hosting next year's competition. Innsbruck Mayor Johannes Anzengruber told APA that "not everything has to take place in Vienna ... Austria is bigger than that," and the towns of Oberwart in Burgenland and Wels in Upper Austria also applied.
JJ himself said that he hoped Vienna would win the next ESC , which he would love to present together with his mentor, Conchita Wurst.
Israeli singer Yuval Raphael came in second place in an exuberant celebration of music and unity that was overshadowed by the Gaza war and rocked by discord over Israel's participation .
JJ won after a thrilling finale that saw Raphael garner a massive public vote from his numerous fans for his anthem "New Day Will Rise." But he also faced protests from pro-Palestinian demonstrators demanding Israel be expelled from the competition for its conduct in the war against Hamas in Gaza.
In a post- victory press conference, JJ stated that the message of his song about unrequited romance was that " love is the most powerful force on planet Earth, and love persevered."
"Let's spread the love , guys," said JJ , adding that he was honored to be the first Eurovision champion of Filipino heritage, as well as a proud queer winner .
The world's biggest live music event , which has been uniting and dividing Europeans since 1956, came to a glittering conclusion with a grand finale in Basel featuring hard-hitting electropop, quirky rock, and flamboyant divas.
Acts from 26 countries —narrowed down to 37 entrants via two elimination semi-finals —performed for an estimated 160 million viewers for the continent's pop crown. No smoke machine, flame blast, or dazzling light display was spared by the musicians, who had three minutes to win over millions of viewers who, along with national juries of music professionals, chose the winner .
Estonian Tommy Cash finished third with his song "Espresso Macchiato." Swedish entry KAJ, who had been favored to win with the cheerful sauna ode "Bara Bada Bastu," finished fourth.
The show was a celebration of Europe's eclectic, and sometimes bewildering, musical tastes.
This year's contest was marred for the second year in a row by disputes over Israel's participation . Raphael —a survivor of the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on a music festival in southern Israel that sparked the Gaza war—was greeted with a mix of cheers and boos as she sang.
Swiss broadcaster SRG SSR reported that a man and a woman were detained while trying to climb a barrier onto the stage at the end of their song. It said a crew member was hit by paint thrown by the couple. Raphael 's team said she was "shocked and upset."
Hamas attacks killed 1,200 people, and approximately 250 were taken hostage in Gaza. More than 52,800 people in Gaza have died in Israel's retaliation, according to the territory's health ministry.
Pro-Palestinian and pro-Israel protests took place in Basel, although on a much smaller scale than last year's event in Sweden.
TOPICS -
Diariolibre
