Belarus’ singer Gunesh second at TurkVision contest

        Belarusian singer Gunesh Abasova won the second prize at the first edition of the international song contest TurkVision. The final of the festival was held in Eskisehir, Turkey. Azerbaijan’s Farid Hasanov won the contest with 210 points, with Gunesh being only five points behind. Third went to Ukraine’s Fazile Ibrahimova (200 points).
        Taking part in the contest were singers from 24 countries. Only 12 of them qualified for the final. The jury of the festival included representatives of all participating countries.
        TurkVision is known as an alternative to Eurovision. Its rules stipulate that the next contest is hosted by the cultural capital of the Turkic world rather than by the country of the winning artist. Unlike the Eurovision Song Contest all songs should be performed in the state language of the host country.