Own Eurovision Song Contest 4

Own Eurovision Song Contest 4, often referred to as OESC 4, was the 4th edition of Own Eurovision Song Contest. The shows were held in Košice, Slovakia, after Kristina won the previous contest, with her song "Life Is a Game".

Thirty-seven countries have confirmed participation in the fourth edition. Azerbaijan, Belarus, Finland, Liechtenstein and Vatican City made their debut in the contest. Albania, Austria, Cyprus, Iceland, Italy and Portugal returned in the competition. Czech Republic, FYR Macedonia, Greece, Hungary, Montenegro, Slovenia and Ukraine have announce their withdrawal.

The winner of the fourth edition was Funda with her song "Stand Up", representing Belgium, receiving 146 points, winning with a margin of seven points in front of second place, who went to Croatia. Romania finished on third place, England got the 4th place and 5th place went to Bulgaria.

Location
Further information on the host country: Slovakia

Host City
Košice is the largest city in eastern Slovakia. It is situated on the river Hornád at the eastern reaches of the Slovak Ore Mountains, near the border with Hungary. With a population of approximately 240,000, Košice is the second-largest city in Slovakia, after the capital Bratislava.

Being the economic and cultural centre of eastern Slovakia, Košice is the seat of the Košice Region and Košice Self-governing Region, the Slovak Constitutional Court, three universities, various dioceses, and many museums, galleries, and theatres. In 2013 Košice was the European Capital of Culture, together with Marseille, France. Košice is an important industrial centre of Slovakia, and the U.S. Steel Košice steel mill is the largest employer in the city. The town has extensive railway connections and an international airport.

The city has a preserved historical centre which is the largest among Slovak towns. There are heritage protected buildings in Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque, and Art Nouveau styles with Slovakia's largest church: the St. Elisabeth Cathedral. The long main street, rimmed with aristocratic palaces, Catholic churches, and townsfolk's houses, is a thriving pedestrian zone with boutiques, cafés, and restaurants. The city is known as the first settlement in Europe to be granted its own coat-of-arms.

Venue
Steel Aréna – Košický štadión L. Trojáka is the new home arena of the ice hockey club HC Košice.

Steel Arena opened on February 24, 2006. Its capacity is 8,343 seats and was named in honour of the general sponsor of the club – the U. S. Steel Košice (a member of the United States Steel Corporation) and also in honour of Ladislav Troják, a Košice-born hockey player who was the first Slovak to win the World Championship with the Czechoslovakian national team.

Steel Aréna was one of the venues for the 2011 IIHF World Championship, which was hosted by Bratislava and Košice. The scoreboard, one of the most advanced LED scoreboards in the world was designed and manufactured by Colosseo, a Slovak company.

Semi-final 1
Sixteen countries participated in the first semi-final. Moldova, Scotland and Slovakia also voted in this semi-final. Italy was disqualified for not voting.

Semi-final 2
Sixteen countries participated in the second semi-final. Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovakia and Sweden also voted in this semi-final. San Marino was disqualified for not voting.

Final
Twenty-five countries participated in the final, with all 37 participating countries eligible to vote.