Reigning Eurovision champion Duncan Laurence will not perform in the song contest final on Saturday after testing positive for Covid-19.
As is tradition, Laurence, who won the Eurovision in 2019 for The Netherlands with his song Arcade, was set to perform at the grand final.
We're sorry to have to break this news about our current champion, and wish him a speedy recovery. 💙https://t.co/yy16siGwKC
— Eurovision Song Contest (@Eurovision) May 20, 2021
The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) confirmed on Thursday that Laurence is now unable to perform live in the Ahoy venue in Rotterdam after testing positive for Covid-19.
The EBU said he delivered a positive result in a rapid antigen test after showing mild symptoms on Wednesday.
Due to the minimum, seven-day isolation period, he can no longer perform live at the Ahoy, but the EBU said he will "still feature in the show in a different form".
Laurence's management said: "Duncan is very disappointed, he has been looking forward to this for two years. We are very happy that he will still be seen in the final on Saturday, May 22."
The news comes after Iceland's entry Daði og Gagnamagnið, among the favourites in this year's competition, had to withdraw from tonight's second semi-final after one of their band members tested positive for Covid-19.
Instead, their rehearsal of 10 Years will be broadcast to allow them to compete.
