Belarusian Roman Voloznev won the Grand Prix of the XXIX "Slavianski Bazaar" pop song contest.

Roman Voloznev, the representative of Belarus, won the Grand Prix of the pop song performers' contest at the XXIX "Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk" festival.

Roman Voloznev, the representative of Belarus, won the Grand Prix of the pop song performers' contest at the XXIX "Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk" festival.

Following two contest performances with his original composition "Sviacha" to the lyrics by Maksim Bahdanovich and the world hit "Autumn Leaves," he scored 134 points. The winner will take home the coveted "Lyra" statuette and a cash prize of $20,000 from the festival city of Vitebsk. He also received a special prize named after Vladimir Muliavin for the best embodiment of the national theme, high performing skill, and a special prize from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union of Belarus and Russia.

The first prize of the prestigious contest and a special prize were awarded to Ukrainian singer Elina Ivashchenko, who also scored 134 points. Her soulful performance captivated the hearts of the jury and the audience.

The second prize laureate was Karolina Lyndo from Lithuania. Polina Gagarina's hit "Navsegda" and Whitney Houston's "I Have Nothing" earned the artist 131 points.

The third prize was shared by Ivona Odicic from Bosnia and Herzegovina and Khansultan from Kazakhstan.

The special prize of the President of Belarus "Slavic Hope" was awarded to Elina Ivashchenko. Elena Freyman, a contestant from Russia, received special prizes from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union of Belarus and Russia and the Interstate Television and Radio Company "MIR".

Participants from 14 countries competed for victory in the XXIX "Vitebsk-2020" International Pop Song Performers' Contest: Armenia, Belarus, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Italy, Kazakhstan, Cuba, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Russia, Serbia, Ukraine, and Estonia.

This year, the contestants were evaluated by Inna Afanasyeva (Belarus), Kate Ryan (Belgium), Thomas Nevergreen (Denmark), Karligash Abdikarymova (Kazakhstan), Ladislav Bubnar (Slovakia), and Natalia Buchinskaya (Ukraine). The jury was headed by People's Artist of Russia Oleg Gazmanov.