The symbolic Eurovision-2012 song contest key handover ceremony was held today in Baku.
During the event at the Buta Palace the mayor of last year's Host City of Düsseldorf, Dirk Elbers, handed over the symbolic key to the Eurovision Song Contest to the mayor of this year's Host City, Hajibala Abutalibov, Trend recently reported. Thus, Baku now officially hosts the contest.
Executive Producer of Eurovision, Jon Ola Sand, the Event Supervisor of the Contest, Sietse Bakker, and other contest officials attended this ceremony.
The handing over of the symbolic key of the Eurovision contest was broadcast live by the Public Television and Radio Broadcasting Company of Azerbaijan, the official website of the contest eurovision.tv, as well as TV channels of some member-states of the European Broadcasting Union.
Representatives of the public broadcasting companies of Georgia, Finland, Germany, Serbia, Malta, Moldova, Estonia and Belarus, as well as reporters of the Euronews TV channel, arrived in Azerbaijan to cover the ceremony.
The semi-final rounds of the contest will be held in Baku on May 22 and May 24. The final will be held on May 26.
Azerbaijani duo Eldar Gasimov and Nigar Jamal with their pop-ballad "Running Scared" won the Eurovision Song Contest in 2011.
Azerbaijan does not take part in the draw. According to the contest terms, the winner country of the previous contest, as well as Great Britain, France, Germany, Spain and Italy are admitted to the final without going through the semi-final stages.
