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The Eurovision Song Contest 2009 will be the 54th Eurovision Song Contest, scheduled to take place on 16 May 2009, with two semi-finals on 12 and 14 May.[1] It will be held in Russia[2] with the host venue confirmed as the Olympic Indoor Arena within Moscow.[3] Changes in the voting procedure will occur with the re-introduction of a national jury alongside televoting. Forty-two countries have confirmed their participation in the contest.

Venue

The contest will be held in Russia following its victory in the 2008 contest in Belgrade, Serbia with Dima Bilan’s “Believe”.[2] Vladimir Putin, Prime Minister of Russia, has stated that the contest will be held in Moscow and it was proposed by the host broadcaster, Channel One, that the contest be held in the Olympic Indoor Arena within Moscow.[3][4] This proposal was evaluated by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and confirmed on 13 September 2008.[3] The Director-General of the venue, Vladimir Churilin refuted rumors of emergency reconstruction of the building, saying: “It will not be required for the Eurovision Song Contest. We now can take up to 25 thousand spectators.”[5]