Albania: Aurela Gaçe wins Düsseldorf ticket

Aurela Gaçe will represent Albania in the 2011 Eurovision Song Contest in May. Tonight at Tirana’s Palace of Congresses, the final of the 49th Festivali i Kenges took place, with Aurela emerging as a winner at the end of another epic show.

Eighteen acts took to the stage, having qualified from semifinals over the previous two nights. Singing “Kënga ime”, Aurela gained a total of 82 points, defeating second placed Alban Skandaraj & Miriam by a margin of 16 points. The full crosstable of the jurors’ votes appears below.

Aurela Gaçe is a Festivali i Kenges veteran, having twice won the contest in the pre-Eurovision days (1999, 2001). Now aged 36 and resident in New York, Aurela will be Albania’s seventh Eurovision entrant. Clearly delighted to have won, Aurela gave a speech of thanks and reprised her winning entry at the end of the night. “Kënga ime” means “My Song”, and may well see a translated version put forward for Düsseldorf. Sukses në Aurela!

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=suz_KQqYGTY