Country:Israel Artist:Kobi Marimi

The 27-year-old Kobi Marimi was born and raised in Ramat Gan, Israel. Kobi finished his acting studies last year at the Nissan Nativ acting Studio in Tel Aviv. He appeared in a few plays. 

Preview video

Lyrics of Home

English (Original)Caught up in this moment'til my heartbeat stopsI've been running barefoot to the mountain topsNothing comes as easy as it goesI can hug the water when it snows
I feel the sun upon my skinAnd I am someone, I am someoneYou pulled my heart, I took it inIt made me someone, I am someoneAnd now I'm done, I'm coming home
I used to listen to the way they talkCounting down the minutes from the ticking clock
I feel the sun upon my skinAnd I am someone, I am someoneYou pulled my heart, I took it inIt made me someone, I am someoneAnd now I'm done, I'm coming… 
Home was so far,Collecting scars, I refuseAnother touch won't be another bruise
I feel the sun upon my skinAnd I am someone, I am someoneYou pulled my heart, I took it inIt made me someone, I am someoneI'm standing tall not giving inCause I am someone, I am someoneAnd now I'm done, I'm coming home

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Israel has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 41 times since making its debut in 1973. Israel was able to enter the contest as the Israel Broadcasting Authority (IBA) is a member organisation of the European Broadcasting Union, which is responsible for the event. Israel has won the contest four times, and has hosted the contest twice, in 1979 and 1999, both times in Jerusalem. Israel will host the contest for the third time in Tel Aviv in 2019.IsraelFlag
Member station
Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation (Kan)
Former members

1973–2017: Israel Broadcasting Authority (IBA)

National selection events

Internal Selection

1973–1977
1990
1998–2000
2002–2004
2007
2012
2014 (artist)
2015 (song)
2017–2018 (song)

National Final

Israel Song Festival
1978–1979
Kdam Eurovision
1981–1989
1991–1993
1995
2001
2005–2006
2008–2011
2013
2014 (song)
HaKokhav HaBa
2015–2019

Participation summary
Appearances
41 (35 finals)
First appearance
1973
Best result
1st: 1978, 1979, 1998, 2018
Worst result
24th SF: 2007
External links
Kan page
Israel's page at Eurovision.tv
Song contest current event.png For the most recent participation see
Israel in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019

Israel's first appearance at the contest in 1973 was successful, with Ilanit finishing fourth. Israel then achieved victories in 1978 and 1979, with wins for Izhar Cohen and the Alphabeta, with the song "A-Ba-Ni-Bi" and Gali Atari and Milk and Honey, with "Hallelujah". In 1980, the IBA declined to host the contest for the second successive year for financial reasons, and as the date for the contest in The Hague conflicted with Yom Hazikaron – Israeli Memorial Day – Israel did not participate. This is the only time that the winning country did not compete the following year. The country's best results in the 1980s were the second-place finishes for Avi Toledano in 1982 and Ofra Haza in 1983. Former winner Izhar Cohen returned to place fifth in 1985, before Duo Datz finished third in 1991. Israel achieved its third victory in 1998, with Dana International and "Diva". Eden then finished fifth in 1999. As of 2018, Israel has the record for most participations in the contest without ever coming last, but it has placed second to last in the final three times, in 1986, 1993 and 2006.

Since the introduction of the semi-finals in 2004, Israel has failed to reach the final six times. In 2005, Shiri Maimon gave the country its tenth top five result, finishing fourth. Having failed to qualify for the final for four consecutive years (2011–14), Israel reached the final for the first time in five years, with Nadav Guedj finishing ninth in 2015. Israel's fourth victory came when Netta won the 2018 contest in Lisbon, with the song "Toy". 

HistoryEdit
VictoriesEdit

To date there have been four Israeli victories in the contest. Izhar Cohen and Alphabeta won in Paris in 1978 with the uptempo A-Ba-Ni-Bi. On home ground in Jerusalem the following year, Israel won again, this time with the anthemic Hallelujah performed by Gali Atari & Milk and Honey. Unusually, Israel did not defend the title in 1980 (see below). The third victory came almost 20 years later in Birmingham in 1998. Singer Dana International took top honours with the song Diva, setting off widespread celebrations in Israel. Twenty years later, Israel earned their fourth victory at the 2018 contest in Lisbon, Portugal. The song was "Toy" by Netta Barzilai, which earned Israel their highest-ever score of 529 points.
Other performancesEdit

Israel's earliest selections were picked by the Israel Broadcasting Authority. The first singer to represent the country in 1973 was Ilanit, who finished 4th. Criticism increased after she was sent again four years later, leading to a rule that the winner of the already established Hebrew Song and Chorus Festival would also represent Israel at the contest. The Eurovision Song Contest winners of 1978 and 1979 were selected by this method. From 1981 the selection process was handled by the Kdam Eurovision with the exceptions of 1990, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002–2004, 2006–2007 and 2010 where the selections were again picked by the IBA.

After winning the contest in 1978 and 1979, the IBA was financially and logistically unable to organise the event for the second consecutive year. The organization of the festival was subsequently handed over to the Netherlands who finally agreed to stage it. Because much time had already passed, it was difficult to find a suitable date for the Song Contest. The date chosen coincided with a memorial day in Israel, and the country was forced to withdraw. This made Israel the only country to date unable to defend its title. The 1980 Hebrew Song and Chorus Festival therefore did not double as a national final that year unlike the last two years, and the winning song "Pizmon Chozer" by the band The Brothers & the Sisters was never given the chance to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest. In 1984 Israel once again refrained from participating due to the same date conflict. The song "Balalaika" by Ilanit has often been rumoured to originally have been intended as the Israel entry in Eurovision Song Contest 1984 but the rumours have never been confirmed.

Apart from its victories, Israel's entries have had a mixed reception at the contest. Avi Toledano (1982) and Ofra Haza (1983) scored well with big revivalist numbers, but the all-singing, all-dancing style became less popular later in the decade and Israel's 1986 entry, Yavo Yom by Moti Giladi & Sarai Tzuriel, came in 19th, the country's worst showing yet.

In 1987 Israel finished 8th with Shir Habatlanim by the satiric duo Lazy Bums. Due to its satiric nature, it prompted then Israeli Minister of Culture, Yitzhak Navon, to threaten to resign, if the song went on to represent Israel on the night of the contest. However, he didn't.

In 1990 Rita's sensuous ballad was not well received, but in 1991, Orna and Moshe Datz finished third, Israel's best result since 1983. Israel's third victory occurred in 1998, when Dana International won the crown with her song "Diva." Israel also had a 5th-place finish by Eden when it hosted the 1999 contest. However, Ping-Pong's disco effort in 2000 failed badly, though the group was noted for their largely optimistic lyrics and message of reconciliation and peace in Western Asia. They went as far as waving Syrian flags at the end of their performance, angering some Israelis.

In 2004 David D'Or came in 11th in the semifinal with the song "Leha'amin" (להאמין), leaving Israel out of the finals for the first time since 1997. Shiri Maymon's performance in Kiev in 2005 brought Israel back to the top five, and ensured a place in the Athens 2006 final. In 2006, Israel was represented by singer Eddie Butler, who had finished 5th as part of Eden in 1999; however, his performance of the song "Together We Are One" finished 23rd, with just four points.

IBA's Eurovision committee chose the band Teapacks to represent Israel in the 2007 Eurovision Song Contest Semi-Final in Helsinki. Their humorous entry "Push the Button" did not fare well, finishing in 24th place out of a semifinal field of 28 and failing to reach the final. Israel had to compete in the semi-final in Belgrade 2008, from which it passed on to the final; Boaz finished ninth. At the Eurovision Song Contest 2009, an Arab citizen of Israel represented the country for the first time, as Mira Awad performed along with Jewish-Israeli singer Noa in Moscow. Israel was represented in 2010 by Harel Skaat, who came in 14th in the final.

Israel's participations from 2011 to 2014 were less successful, as former Eurovision winner Dana International in Düsseldorf, the band Izabo in Baku, Moran Mazor in Malmö and Mei Finegold in Copenhagen, all failed to qualify for the final. However, 16-year-old Nadav Guedj qualified with Golden Boy in 2015, the first Israel song without a Hebrew lyric. Prior to their fourth win, they also managed to qualify in 2016 with Hovi Star and "Made of Stars" (which finished 14th) and in 2017 with Imri Ziv and "I Feel Alive" (which finished 23rd, Israel's lowest score in a Eurovision final since 2006).
ContestantsEdit

Table key

  Winner
  Second place
  Third place
  Last place
  Withdrew
Year     Artist     Language     Title     Final     Points     Semi     Points
1973     Ilanit     Hebrew     "Ey Sham" (אי שם)     4     97     No semi-finals
1974     Kaveret     Hebrew     "Natati La Khayay" (נתתי לה חיי)     7     11
1975     Shlomo Artzi     Hebrew     "At Va'Ani" (את ואני)     11     40
1976     Chocolate, Menta, Mastik     Hebrew     "Emor Shalom" (אמור שלום)     6     77
1977     Ilanit     Hebrew     "Ahava Hi Shir Lishnayim" (אהבה היא שיר לשניים)     11     49
1978     Izhar Cohen & the Alphabeta     Hebrew     "A-Ba-Ni-Bi" (א-ב-ני-בי)     1     157
1979     Gali Atari & Milk and Honey     Hebrew     "Hallelujah" (הללויה)     1     125
1980     Did not participate
1981     Hakol Over Habibi     Hebrew     "Halayla" (הלילה)     7     56
1982     Avi Toledano     Hebrew     "Hora" (הורה)     2     100
1983     Ofra Haza     Hebrew     "Hi" (חי)     2     136
1984     Did not participate
1985     Izhar Cohen     Hebrew     "Olé, Olé" (עולה, עולה)     5     93
1986     Moti Giladi & Sarai Tzuriel     Hebrew     "Yavo Yom" (יבוא יום)     19     7
1987     Lazy Bums     Hebrew     "Shir Habatlanim" (שיר הבטלנים)     8     73
1988     Yardena Arazi     Hebrew     "Ben Adam" (בן אדם)     7     85
1989     Gili & Galit     Hebrew     "Derekh Hamelekh" (דרך המלך)     12     50
1990     Rita     Hebrew     "Shara Barkhovot" (שרה ברחובות)     18     16
1991     Duo Datz     Hebrew     "Kan" (כאן)     3     139
1992     Dafna Dekel     Hebrew     "Ze Rak Sport" (זה רק ספורט)     6     85
1993     Sarah'le Sharon & The Shiru Group     Hebrew, English     "Shiru" (שירו)     24     4
1994     Did not participate
1995     Liora     Hebrew     "Amen" (אמן)     8     81
1996a     Galit Bell     Hebrew     "Shalom Olam" (שלום עולם)     Failed to qualify     28     12
1997     Did not participate     No semi-finals
1998     Dana International     Hebrew     "Diva" (דיווה)     1     172c
1999     Eden     Hebrew, English     "Yom Huledet (Happy Birthday)" (יום הולדת)     5     93
2000     PingPong     Hebrew     "Sameach" (שמח)     22     7
2001     Tal Sondak     Hebrew     "En Davar" (אין דבר)     16     25
2002     Sarit Hadad     Hebrew, English     "Nadlik Beyakhad Ner (Light A Candle)" (נדליק ביחד נר)     12     37
2003     Lior Narkis     Hebrew, English     "Milim La'Ahava" (מילים לאהבה)     19     17
2004     David D'Or     Hebrew, English     "Leha'amin" (להאמין)     Failed to qualify     11     57
2005     Shiri Maimon     English, Hebrew     "HaSheket SheNish'ar" (השקט שנשאר)     4     154     7     158
2006     Eddie Butler     English, Hebrew     "Together We Are One"     23     4     Top 11 Previous Year[a]
2007     Teapacks     English, French, Hebrew     "Push the Button"     Failed to qualify     24     17
2008     Bo'az Ma'uda     Hebrew, English     "The Fire In Your Eyes"     9     124     5     104
2009     Noa & Mira Awad     English, Hebrew, Arabic     "There Must Be Another Way"     16     53     7     75
2010     Harel Skaat     Hebrew     "Milim" (מילים)     14     71     8     71
2011     Dana International     Hebrew, English     "Ding Dong" (דינג דונג)     Failed to qualify     15     38
2012     Izabo     English, Hebrew     "Time"     13     33
2013     Moran Mazor     Hebrew     "Rak bishvilo" (רק בשבילו)     14     40
2014     Mei Finegold     English, Hebrew     "Same Heart"     14     19
2015     Nadav Guedj     English     "Golden Boy"     9     97     3     151
2016     Hovi Star     English     "Made of Stars"     14     135     7     147
2017     IMRI     English     "I Feel Alive"     23     39     3     207
2018     Netta     English     "Toy"     1     529     1     283
2019                         Host country[b]

NOTES:
    a. ^ In 1996 Israel failed to qualify for the contest. There was an audio only pre-qualification round for all countries (excluding hosts Norway). The official Eurovision site does not count 1996 in Israel's list of appearances.
    b. If a country had won the previous year, they did not have to compete in the semi-finals the following year. In addition from 2004-2007, the top ten placed countries who were not one of the "Big Four" did not have to compete in the semi-finals the following year. If, for example, Germany and France placed inside the top ten, the countries who placed 11th and 12th were advanced to the following year's grand final along with the rest of the top ten countries.
    c. ^ Spain originally gave its 12 points to Israel and 10 to Norway. After the broadcast it was announced that Spanish broadcaster wrongly tallied the votes and Germany should have got the top mark - 12 points - instead of being snubbed, as it happened. The mistake was corrected and so Germany was placed 7th over Norway. Israel and Norway both received 2 points less than originally and Croatia, Malta, Portugal, United Kingdom, Netherlands, Belgium, Estonia and Turkey all received one point less than indicated during the broadcast.

Conductors