Geneva, 25 June 2002. The EBU is satisfied with the preparations by Latvian Television for the 48th Eurovision Song Contest. The EBU Eurovision Song Contest Reference Group visited Riga on 13 and 14 June to examine the facilities and the progress already made. The next contest will be held on 24 May 2003 and Arvids Babris has been appointed executive producer of the event. The Reference Group was pleased with the preparations under way and by the quality of the various venues proposed for the contest. Two venues have been shortlisted: the Skonto Stadium (hall 1) and the Kipsala Exhibition Centre. The feasibility of holding the contest in an open-air stadium was sidelined. For Christine Marchal, the EBU coordinator of the contest, the visit enabled the Reference Group to check that “everything is being done in Riga to make a success of a show that year after year is gaining in popularity and which has become a must-see for a growing number of fans who are also very demanding”. Latvia won the 2002 contest in Tallinn with the singer Marie N performing “Wanna”. The total audience for that contest, according to figures supplied by Estonian Television, was 166 millions viewers: a 90% market share in Malta; 81.8% in Sweden; 80.4% in Spain; 77% in Finland; 67% in Israel; and even 9.2% in…Australia – a world away from Eurovision! Latvian Television will now be providing the EBU Reference Group with additional elements for the organization of the event. The next Reference Group visit will be on 13 September 2002.