Portugal is riding high in the odds, better than ever I can remember of, and well deserved. Salvador Sobral's Amar pelos dois is a fantastic song. Maybe the most autenthic and real one in the whole contest this year, or even in years. It's not powing or written for Eurovision standars and clichés, it's heart felt, real piece of musical art, masterfully performed. They might be closer than ever to break the spell of 6th place, their best since 1964 and Portugal holds the longest run of no win in the contest's history, beating Finland already by a decade. But there are dark clouds in the Portuguese Eurovision success in the making.
It was already reported during the Portuguese national final season, that Salvador Sobral performed with serious hernia problems and basicly went from the semifinal straight to the operation. Before the final he had two hernia operations and we thought that was it......
Now it emerges that isn't all of it at all. He has also a severe heart condition, and is in line for a transplant. He needs a new heart as soon as possible, before the end of the year. If his maybe akward movements on stage were due to the pain he was in, the baggy jacket covers the external pacemaker and its batteries he carries in his back. Or so the tabloids tell. For once I am really hoping they are esaggerating. UPDATE: And so it seems. Phew.
We won't be seeing Sobral doing any promotional events before Kyiv and he will concentrate only on his health and being at his best in those two weeks in Kyiv. And I don't think he needs to. The song speaks for itself. He only need to show up on stage when it matter in Kyiv and do the magic. And the rest will follow....
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