Own Eurovision Song Contest 3

Own Eurovision Song Contest 3, often referred to as OESC #03, is the 3rd edition of Own Eurovision Song Contest. It was hosted in Zadar, Croatia, after Franka Batelic & Eric Destler won Own Eurovision Song Contest 2 in Stockholm, Sweden.

Thirty-three countries have confirmed participation in the third edition, with England, Estonia, Hungary, Lithuania, Scotland and Slovakia making their debut in the contest. Belgium and Denmark will be returning in the competition after an one edition break. Albania, Andorra, Austria, Cyprus, Iceland, Monaco, Portugal, Switzerland and United Kingdom have announced their withdrawal.

The contest was won by Kristina, representing Slovakia with the song "Life Is a Game". So far, this has been the first time that Slovakia has won the contest. For the first time in the history of the contest there was a tie between the winner and the runner-up, Bosnia and Herzegovina, as both had received 142 points. This necessitated a count-back, since Slovakia received votes from 16 countries and Bosnia and Herzegovina only 15 countries, Kristina was declared the winner. Third place went to Moldova, fourth to the host country, Croatia and fifth place went to Sweden.

Location
Further information on the host country: Croatia

Host City
Zadar is the oldest continuously inhabited Croatian city. It is situated on the Adriatic Sea, at the northwestern part of Ravni Kotari region. Zadar serves as the seat of Zadar County and of the wider northern Dalmatian region. The city proper covers 25 km2 with a population of 75,082 in 2011, making it the second-largest city of the region of Dalmatia and the fifth-largest city in the country.

The area of present-day Zadar traces its earliest evidence of human life from the late Stone Age, while numerous settlements date as early as the Neolithic.[citation needed] Before the Illyrians, an ancient Mediterranean people of an Indo-European culture inhabited the area. Zadar traces its origin to its 9th-century BC founding as a settlement of the Illyrian tribe of Liburnians known as Iader.

Today, Zadar is a historical center of Dalmatia, Zadar County's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, educational, and transportation centre. Zadar is also the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Zadar. Because of its rich heritage, Zadar is today one of the most popular Croatian tourist destinations, named "entertainment center of the Adriatic" by The Times and "Croatia's new capital of cool" by The Guardian.

Venue
Krešimir Ćosić Hall is a multi-use indoor arena in Zadar, Croatia.

Completed in May 2008 with a capacity for 10,000 people, it is used mostly for team handball and basketball matches. It was used as one of the venues during the 2009 World Men's Handball Championship and home matches of KK Zadar. Supporters of KK Zadar Tornado Zadar have their own section of the arena.

As of 3 October 2008 its official name became Krešimir Ćosić Hall. Former names were Sportski centar Višnjik and Arena Zadar. Nickname is Peka. For several months during 2008 it was the largest indoor arena in Croatia, and now is the third largest.

Semi-final 1
Fourteen countries participated in the first semi-final. Croatia, Norway and Romania voted in this semi-final.

Semi-final 2
Fourteen countries participated in the second semi-final. Croatia, Ireland and Sweden voted in this semi-final. San Marino was disqualified for not voting.

Final
Twenty-six countries participated in the final, with all 33 participating countries eligible to vote.