Dutch artist Joost Klein disqualified from Eurovision Song Contest after incident with production team member

The European Broadcasting Union said in a statement that “Swedish police have launched an investigation into a complaint filed by a female member of the production team following an incident that occurred after the artist’s performance in the semi-final last Thursday.

In a statement, the organizers of the page said “it would not be appropriate for him to continue participating in the event” while things were going on.

“We would like to clarify that, contrary to some media reports and speculation on social media, this event did not involve a contractor or any other member of the delegation,” the EBU said.

“We maintain a zero tolerance policy for inappropriate behavior at our event and are committed to ensuring a safe working environment for competition staff. Therefore, Joost Klein’s behavior towards a member of the team was considered a violation of the rules of the competition,” she said.

In addition, 25 participants will take part in the Final of the 68th Eurovision Song Contest.

As the BBC wrote, the news of Klein’s suspension appeared on Friday afternoon, during the first dress rehearsal before Saturday’s final. The Dutchman’s props were being placed on stage at the Malmoe Arena when the production manager said they needed to be removed.

His song was then skipped, without explanation, and Israeli contestant Eden Golan appeared on stage next line.

The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) later issued a statement saying they were “investigating the reported incident involving a Dutch artist.

On Saturday, Swedish police confirmed a case had been reported of a man making “illegal threats” at Arena Malmoe after Thursday’s semi-final. – Explanatory activities were carried out and interviews were conducted with the suspect, the complainant and witnesses – said the police spokesperson. – The investigation has been completed by the police, and the case will now go to the prosecutor – he said.

Joost Klein with the song “Europapa” was one of the favorites in the final on Saturday.

This was the opinion of, among others, Glenn Weldon, an American cultural critic. In a text published on the NPR website, he describes the song as “goofy, joyful, catchy bop (jazz style – ed.)”. “It’s classic Eurovision. And that’s even without taking into account the text, which is basically a declaration of love for the European Union itself,” he said.

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