No Changes To The Eurovision Song Contest Reference Group

The Reference Group of the Eurovision Song Contest remains unchanged after all the existing members were re-elected to their roles.

The Reference Group of the Eurovision Song Contest was created in 1998 to oversee the development and future of the format of the contest. They also oversee financing, the brand and raising awareness of the contest, while also overseeing the preparations of the contest each year. The group meets four to five times per year and is formed of the following members:

Dr. Frank-Deiter Freiling - Chairman:

Has been chairman of the Reference Group since 2009, originally at the German broadcaster ZDF he is a neutral member of the group, having no ties to a broadcaster involved in the Eurovision Song Contest.

Jon-Ola Sand - EBU Representative:

Jon-Ola Sand is the Executive Supervisor of the Eurovision Song Contest a role he has held since 2011. Before taking on the Executive Supervisor role he was the Executive Producer of the 2010 Eurovision Song Contest in Oslo, Norway and had been the Norwegian Head of Delegation between 1998 and 2005.

Edgar Böhm - 2015 Executive Producer:

Edgar Böhm is one of the two Executive Producers of the previous two years contests who remains on the Reference Group for two years after their contest was held.

Martin Österdahl - 2016 Executive Producer

Martin Österdahl is one of the two Executive Producers of the previous two years contests who remains on the Reference Group for two years after their contest was held.

Aleksandr Radic - Elected Member

Aleksandr Radic has been re-elected to his position in the Reference Group for a further two years. He has been a member of the Slovenian delegation for a number of years.

Emilie Sickinghe - Elected Member

Emilie Sickinghe is the Head of Delegation for the Netherlands at the Eurovision Song Contest, she will remain on the Reference Group until 2019.

Nicola Caligiore - Elected Member

Nicola Caligiore is the Head of Delegation for Italy, he worked to bring RAI back to the contest in 2011 and has been a member of the delegation since.

Source: Eurovision.tv