Federer91

Ok, final predictions before tonight. Who i think will qualify - Sweden, Portugal, Armenia, Finland, Greece, Australia, Poland, Moldova, Latvia and Belgium (ugh) Who i want to qualify - Moldova, Poland, Latvia, Finland, Greece, Sweden, Portugal, Armenia, Slovenia and Azerbaijan

Go JUVE Go !! Ugh, i so hate that this match is tonight with Eurovision. Now i have to set another screen This should have been tomorrow and not that spanish borefest..

Hoping for Nibali of course, but he will probably keep it safe for now.

Ughh, i have a feeling that Belgium and Cyprus would qualify tonight, which would be a bummer for me. Their jury performance seemed to be good by comments.

My thoughts on the second 1/2 after the rehearsals. I find it harder to choose the qualifiers from this one. Nearly all countries seem on an even playing field for a qualification, which is good about the intrigue. Nevertheless, here are my predictions. Certain qualifiers: Bulgaria - Nothing personal with this pick, i'm not that big of a fan of the song tbh. But it has been an early favourite from the beginning and it will have no problem getting to the final. The staging isn't as good, as anticipated, but i'd fancy our chances for another top 10(5) place in the final. The juries will love the song, and without Russia in the contest, Kristian would probably be getting the russian vote, given his origin. Romania - One of my favourite songs, which would bring big televote results with it's unique and happy vibe and staging. That alone will get them a place in the final, even with the jury snubbing them hard. It will stand out immensely. Denmark - Great singer and voice, and has a very good draw. In the sea of ballads, i think this one will get the upper-hand and overshadow Hungary and Ireland around it. It will have a nice blend of jury and televote, i can't see how it doesn't qualify. Belarus - The song was so meh, since it was released, but they have done a magical thing with the staging. In a year with big bland stagings, this is undoubtedly one of the best and suits the song to perfection. I have hardly seen any complains about Belarus. Austria - Like Belarus, a staging that has done wonders for a mediocre song. The second position is usually a killer in the starting order, but this time it's actually a blessing, since it's the only compeling performance in the first 4. A country that i'd never thought could qualify, managed to get to one of my secured picks. Likely qualifiers: The Netherlands - I wouldn't say jury bait, but this would probably do better with the juries than with the public. The girls are the best part of the performance and i think the staging could be seen a little boring for the televoters. Estonia - Such a good song, but i feel they could have done a better job with the camera angles for the staging. It will probably get through, but i'm not so confident, as i would have liked. Lately i'm really thinking it could get overshadowed by Lithuania before them. Norway - A very unique staging and camera angles, that will get people's attention. I think that people, who don't usually vote, may give this entry some push. Norway almost never misses the final and last year was an anomaly i reckon. Israel - If it were to me, this wouldn't qualify, because i find it so bland and generic. I hope things being so close in this 1/2, tips it out, but being the last artist seen by the public, would give them an advantage. If it was in the first half, it would have gotten lost. Also don't think juries would have it between their first choices and save them like last year, solely on that. A true borderliner for me. Croatia - Yes, i have Jacques and his cooky staging in the final We have every year one shocking and unexpected qualifier and i'm betting on this one. Everything is memorable about the performance and people would definately not forget it. Don't know how juries would react to it, but the guy has some real singing abilities, unlike some other artist. Likely non-qualifiers: Hungary - A country that everyone has qualifying, based solely on their ethnic song, but i think that would actually go against them. The juries would give it a push, but i don't think the public will relate to it. The chorus is quite repetitive and the staging doesn't wow you. For me that one song that everyone thinks will get through and are surprised when it doesn't is Hungary this year. Serbia - It's quite shocking that a stable country like Serbia messed up so much with this years entry. Nothing falls into place here, from the singing, to the staging. EBU definately didn't expect this when they put them to open the 1/2. If this wasn't Serbia i would have them as a certain non-qualifier, but with them getting votes by default you never know. Last year Sanja with a much better entry barely squeaked in the final, so this shouldn't. Switzerland - They have gone overboard with the staging here, it doesn't suit the song. I would never know what is the reasoning behind the bright disney colours. Their NF staging was better. It has such an unfavourable running order. It's sandwitched between Croatia, Norway and Belarus, all of whom have different stagings and Switzerlands could fall in the background as too ordinary. I like the song and Miruna is amazing, i would gladly swap it for Israel, but i don't think, when everything is set and done, they'd qualify for the final. Lithuania - This has come a long way. From being touted as the worst song this year, to doing actually a very good staging, to actually seeing some people saying that they could qualify. It's definately a different performance, it's in the end of the order, but i think it's far too late for Lithuania to make the jump. Certain non-qualifiers: Macedonia - This is a classic example of a song that has views on youtube, people listen to it on their phones, in the car, but when it goes live for a concert, it completely lacks power and is a non-factor. A typical generic pop song. The staging follows the theme of "dance alone", but it comes out like nothing is going on. Comming after Austria it would look like cheap and unimaginary. Ireland - I actually think they have done a better job than the last couple of years, but it still wouldn't be enough. Murray doesn't feel right for the contest, and if they wanted to grab the teenage vote, it backfired with having Bulgaria in this semifinal. Even if juries made a push for it, i don't see enough people voting for it to qualify. Malta - Forgettable. Even if she sings beautifully, like in the rehearsals, there is nothing that would make people vote for it. It lacks that flair and passion needed to go through. San Marino - Everything about this is fun, i would be pretty happy if it somehow, someway, managed to qualify, just because of the lolz. The meltdown would be glorious. Maybe if it was 10-15 years ago, it would do good, but now, when everything is pushed to be contemporary and innovative and everything else is slammed, no way Jose. See you next year Valentina.

I don't know why they except the votes from Paris, there are hardly any french people there.

Now, now, tradition, those are 4 names for 20 years. Let's not get the list from this championship of countries which have, and how much, foreign wrestlers. There is hardly any european nation that doesn't have some foreign wrestlers.

Well, sadly our mens results aren't what they used to be. Bar some flash in the pan, in the last 7-8 years, it is increasingly rare that we have a finalist at a big championship. Our usual level has become the 1/4 or a few bronze medalists in lucky. By far our women are our stongest team. They usually have more medals from 8 categories than the men have from 16.

Great final day with 2 medals I knew Abdelslam had potential, but getting a gold in his first european champioship is amazing. If he continues with the same dedication and enthusiasm he showed today, he will have a very bright future ahead of him. Overall i'm very happy with our results, it was more than what i anticipated, it's a start in the right direction in the new Olympic cycle!

This red carpet is a fail. The hosts have awful questions and seem like dragged from the street. Not many people too, which is disappointing.

Lol only Italy from the big 5 picked the first half for the final. So much filler in the second half with Spain, Germany and Ukraine..

Was there some strong wind or something. This is so unexpected.

Lol, a black norwegian woman won a gold medal. Total failure for Koblova-Zholobova.

Who would have thought that beach soccer would be so easy to predict. So many perfect predictions in this contest.

[hide] Knockout Round May 4th - May 7th, 2017 8 Nations, Quarterfinals, Semifinals, Bronze Medal Match, Gold Medal Match Semifinals Eastern Time Zone (GMT -4) Date and Venue Team 1 T1 T2 Team 2 May 6th 2017, h. 15:00, Nassau Stadium, Nassau Iran 2 Tahiti May 6th 2017, h. 16:30, Nassau Stadium, Nassau Italy 1 Brazil [/hide]

Probably Greipel ahead of Gaviria. Don't think Ewan would be that good today. Also i'm going out on a limb and saying that Sbaragli would be the best italian today.

[hide] Preliminary Round May 5th - May 16th, 2017 16 Nations, 2 Groups, 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th from each Group qualify to Quarterfinals. Group A Date and Venue Team 1 T1 T2 Team 2 May 5th 2017, h. 16:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne Sweden 1 Russia May 5th 2017, h. 20:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne United States 2 Germany May 6th 2017, h. 12:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne Latvia 2 Denmark May 6th 2017, h. 16:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne Slovakia 3 Italy May 6th 2017, h. 20:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne Germany 3 Sweden May 7th 2017, h. 12:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne Italy 6 Russia May 7th 2017, h. 16:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne United States 5 Denmark May 7th 2017, h. 20:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne Latvia 2 Slovakia May 8th 2017, h. 16:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne Germany 3 Russia May 8th 2017, h. 20:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne United States 1 Sweden May 9th 2017, h. 16:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne Italy 3 Latvia May 9th 2017, h. 20:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne Slovakia 2 Denmark May 10th 2017, h. 16:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne United States 4 Italy May 10th 2017, h. 20:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne Slovakia 1 Germany May 11th 2017, h. 16:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne Russia 3 Denmark May 11th 2017, h. 20:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne Sweden 3 Latvia May 12th 2017, h. 16:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne Sweden 6 Italy May 12th 2017, h. 20:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne Denmark 2 Germany May 13th 2017, h. 12:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne Latvia 2 United States May 13th 2017, h. 16:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne Russia 2 Slovakia May 13th 2017, h. 20:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne Italy 4 Germany May 14th 2017, h. 16:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne Slovakia 1 United States May 14th 2017, h. 20:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne Denmark 4 Sweden May 15th 2017, h. 16:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne Denmark 1 Italy May 15th 2017, h. 20:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne Russia 4 Latvia May 16th 2017, h. 12:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne Sweden 1 Slovakia May 16th 2017, h. 16:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne Russia 2 United States May 16th 2017, h. 20:15, Lanxess Arena, Cologne Germany 2 Latvia Group B Date and Venue Team 1 T1 T2 Team 2 May 5th 2017, h. 16:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris Finland 6 Belarus May 5th 2017, h. 20:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris Czech Republic 2 Canada May 6th 2017, h. 12:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris Switzerland 3 Slovenia May 6th 2017, h. 16:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris Belarus 3 Czech Republic May 6th 2017, h. 20:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris Norway 2 France May 7th 2017, h. 12:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris Slovenia 8 Canada May 7th 2017, h. 16:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris Finland 5 France May 7th 2017, h. 20:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris Norway 1 Switzerland May 8th 2017, h. 16:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris Belarus 4 Canada May 8th 2017, h. 20:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris Finland 1 Czech Republic May 9th 2017, h. 16:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris Slovenia 3 Norway May 9th 2017, h. 20:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris Switzerland 2 France May 10th 2017, h. 16:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris Switzerland 2 Belarus May 10th 2017, h. 20:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris Finland 4 Slovenia May 11th 2017, h. 16:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris Czech Republic 3 Norway May 11th 2017, h. 20:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris Canada 7 France May 12th 2017, h. 16:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris Czech Republic 5 Slovenia May 12th 2017, h. 20:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris France 2 Belarus May 13th 2017, h. 12:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris Norway 2 Finland May 13th 2017, h. 16:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris Slovenia 3 Belarus May 13th 2017, h. 20:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris Canada 5 Switzerland May 14th 2017, h. 16:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris France 4 Czech Republic May 14th 2017, h. 20:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris Switzerland 1 Finland May 15th 2017, h. 16:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris Canada 3 Norway May 15th 2017, h. 20:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris France 1 Slovenia May 16th 2017, h. 12:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris Belarus 1 Norway May 16th 2017, h. 16:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris Czech Republic 2 Switzerland May 16th 2017, h. 20:15, AccorHotels Arena, Paris Canada 2 Finland [/hide]

Ahh, the dreaded ice hockey contest, how i enjoy scratching my head while filling it.

The 100th GIRO starts tomorrow and you can say it is open and interesting like every year. Quintana of course is infront for the win, but you never know if he abandons at some point. I have a strange feeling that the talk of a double isn't going to be a primal factor. One fall or bad day and i won't be surprised if he stepped and concentrated for the Tour. Hope i'm wrong. After him there is a wide range of people for the podium. I'm sure the dutch armada will have at least one of Dumoulin, Mollema or Kruijswijk on the podium. Sky this time have learned off all their mishaps the past years and are sending 2 guys for the GC, but still i think it won't be enough and they underperform. The Giro is not for you. Adam Yates is a hidden player for the podium, the Giro is often the plays where riders have their break-through and if things go his way, he can do some damage. Pinot is probably going to be a disappointment again, but let's see without the home pressure, how he does. And then there is one mister Vincenzo Nibali, who i'm not sure if he is going to be making an appearence. Once in a blue moon is not going to be enough. Especially now that he is not with the Astana train to pull him up. His team isn't competitive and if he really needs to be in top shape, if he want's to do something big. After all he is the only italian with a chance in the 100th edition. The whole nation is looking at him again (sorry Pozzo ) I hope the tragedy with Scarpa (RIP) puts some fire in his legs.

Not surprised about Pirazzi, always thought if there was any, he would be a leading candidate. Ruffoni is surprising and sad, because he had potential to be a good sprinter for the future.

Thank you, wouldn't know with the blackout for Bulgaria. Finally a gold medal, i wanted a title, so mission accomplished! If only i had watched the bout. I'll go back and watch when possible.

UWW site crashes for every finals session. We have one final today and it will be over, before they get their connection going. Such amateurs, i can't....

So, the second rehearsals were today for almost everyone in the first 1/2. I reckon i'd give my humble opinion on the staging and qualifiers at this point. Things are really closer and there seem to be more borderline qualifiers than usual, because of the weak year. Also it doesn't help that some countries with popular studio songs messed up the staging (Belgium, Azerbaijan) , while others made the opposite (Finland, Latvia, Moldova). The juries would play a big factor like always (yawn), but i'm not counting there part as much in my ranking. Certain qualifiers: Sweden - A perfect Sweden ESC 1.0 song, slick, polished, probably is going to win this 1/2, even from the opening position; Finland - Great staging and in an awesome position in the running order. After the trainwrecks and unmemorable songs before it, it will easily stand out; Greece - An upbeat song with a popular artist (it seems?) around many ballads. A classic Greece entry, like we have seen in the past, and because of that it would get a lot of voted, even if the juries vote it lower. Can't see Greece failing for a second year in-a-row; Poland - Great song & performance, with a nice staging. Certanly better than the other ballads. Plus big diaspora, it will go through. Borderline qualifiers (from most to least likely): Azerbaijan - A weird staging, that isn't coming so good on TV for now. Don't know if it will resonate so good with the audience, as the song should have prior to the contest. It was one of the most liked from a studio version. Portugal - This song, i don't know what to say about it. It is so unique and nothing we see hardly at all. The comments are in the two opposites all the time when it comes to it. If it resonates with the audience it could do miracles (certanly the bookies think this way), but it could just as much be ignored and not understanded. The juries would likely push it through, because it will be in their top almost certanly. Moldova - Memorable and fun staging, for a fun song, surrounded by ballads. It will stand-out for the good and i hope it qualifies, no matter how much the juries dish on it. The final needs epic Sax guy. Australia - This shouldn't qualify, because it is the blandness of the blandness stuff. I hope the novelty of voting for Australia goes away and it being in the beginning tips things for it to stay in the 1/2. Again juries would be decider probably, because EBU need big country Australia in the final; Albania - I wouldn't actually mind if this qualified. The song has grown on me and the staging looks intersting. I hope it stand-outs coming after Georgia and Australia and before Belgium and Montenegro. Definately deserves more to qualify than Australia. Likely no chance: Belgium - How? Why? Has everyone been high when coming up with the staging. Everything is a trainwreck. It will be a miracle if this qualifies and only if enough people liked the studio version and closed their eyes on the live performance. Cyprus - So bland and unmemorable, plus it is almost a copycat staging like Belgium 2015, with a worse song. It will get lost. Iceland - If they didn't qualify last year, with a far more better song, then this has no chance.. Georgia - Good singer, but the song is boring, the staging is boring, being second in the order is a curse and it will be scraping for viewer votes. Even if the juries actually throw a few votes towards Georgia it would hardly be enough. Montenegro - No, just no.. Though i'd give it that i at least smile for the lolz Czechia - Even with Montenegro in here, there is another song heading for that last place. It's just 3 dull and empty minutes. I'm sorry for the singer, because she is not bad and tries her best, but everything is bad, everything... The last three countries that didn't rehearse today and didn't watch the TV version of their performance. Armenia - Seems like a popular song, with just enough staging to go through. Seems there is enthusiasm for it and being in the end of the order will definately help it. Likely qualifier. Latvia - For me, a very fun song, with a memorable staging, that will help it a lot in this sea of blandness. Closing the 1/2 is a huge advantage, like with Armenia. Likely qualifier. Slovenia - Maybe the song that was least expected from this year, but the first rehearsal seemed good. Omar is a great singer, unlike many others and this could be a surpise if things go it's way. Again being in the end, could give it a nice chance. Borderline.

Amazing, amazing win by Dudova against the azeri girl in the 1/2 She was losing 2:8 and then 4:10 and managed an infatic comeback for 12:10.