Laura Groeseneken to represent Belgium at Eurovision
It's official. Belgium has announced the name of its 2018 Eurovision Song Contest entrant. Laura Groeseneken, a 27 year-old from Flanders will fly the country's flag in Lisbon. Belgium is the first to announce its participant.
Belgian participants are chosen alternately; the Walloons of the RTBF then the Flemings of the VRT take turns to name an entrant. This year, it was the turn of the country's north to choose. Unlike in previous years, they haven't selected the winner of a TV talent show as was the case with previous entrants such as Loïc Nottet, Laura Tesoro, or even Blanche.
This year, they have chosen a singer with a promising future. Since 2014, Laura Groeseneken has been performing on stage alongside Ozark Henry, for example at the Rock Werchter festival. The young artist from Louvain has also written songs including "Gravity" for the group Hooverphonic.
Laura Groeseneken's name was announced on a VRT show where the singer sang the last song to win Eurovision "Amar pelos dois" in English. Could this be a good sign? Many hope to see a Belgian victory in the European singing competition. No Belgian has won the title since Sandra Kim in 1986, although Belgium has seen good results in recent years. This year, our country finished fourth with Blanche. Previously, the Belgian journey ended in fourth place for Loïc Nottet in 2015 and tenth place for Laura Tesoro in 2016. Will Laura Groeseneken give us our long-awaited first place?