As leading international bookmakers were yesterday ranking Malta’s entry in the forthcoming Eurovision Song Contest somewhere between fifth and seventh place, Malta’s singer Chiara is determined to give it her all as she works her way towards clinching what was “taken away” from her in Birmingham back in 1998.

The first Maltese artiste to represent the island at the prestigious festival for the second time, Chiara was poised to win the 1998 festival but had to settle for third place as Israel’s Dana International was declared the winner.

Bookmakers William Hill are placing Malta seventh, with odds at 16 to 1. It is preceded by Greece (9 to 4), Hungary (6 to 1), Norway (13 to 2), Iceland (10 to 1), Switzerland (11 to 1) and Belarus (14 to 1). On the other hand, Malta is ranking fifth at Bet356, with odds at 10 to 1. Malta comes after Norway (5 to 1), Greece (6 to 1) and Iceland (8 to 1).

In spite of the criticism that has been levelled at her because of her weight, Chiara is confident about herself and about her song, Angel, of which she is also the author and composer. After all, she had the same fingers pointing at her in 1998, when her sweet ballad and humble stage presence, with that innocent wink crowning it all at the end, did the trick. Seven years later, she is older, wiser, stronger and more determined to win than ever before. And she has good reasons to leave no stone unturned to get to the top. For Chiara, Kiev does not only mean a second chance to make Malta proud but also a second chance to kick off an international career – a boat she missed in 1998.

“On Saturday (the ESC’s final night) I want to sing my heart out. I want to feel like a princess. When I walk onto the stage I want to tell myself and the audience: ‘Here I am. This is me!’” Chiara enthused.

Maltasong chairman Grace Borg, whom Chiara affectionately calls “Mummy Grace”, is all out to ensure that Chiara manages to feel that way in the final night.

“Chiara feels her best on stage when she plays the diva role,” said Ms Borg. “And, since her feeling good is of utmost importance for a good interpretation of the song, we will see that she is happy with her appearance on the night.”

Ms Borg would not share any information about the dress Chiara will be wearing on the night. However, she excluded a dress dominated by Chiara’s favourite colour, pink. Meanwhile, the Maltasong chairman will also be making sure that Chiara gets as much rest as possible during this week. She is acting on orders from the singer’s ENT specialist, Dr Alec Lapira. It is clear that the hectic lifestyle Chiara has had to lead since she won the Malta Song for Europe festival in February, and the skyrocketing number of requests to sing Angel, have had their toll on her voice. Dr Lapira has prescribed medicine for Chiara which she has brought with her to Ukraine to take in case she does not feel in shape, she said.

Chiara’s rehearsals at Kiev’s Palats Sportu begin at 10.10am this morning and will be followed by a press conference. The same will happen tomorrow at 11.30am. As a result of Julie and Ludwig having placed Malta in the first ten in Istanbul last year, Chiara will be spared the experience of having to go through the semi-finals on Thursday. In that phase, ten countries will be chosen to join the 14 that have already secured their participation in the final. These are the countries that came among the first ten last year and the four permanent participants: the UK, Spain, France and Germany.

At 3pm and 9pm on Friday and on Saturday at 3pm, Chiara will take part in three dress rehearsals for the final night. The final night itself is scheduled for10pm (9pm Malta time) and will be broadcast on TVM.

Here in Ukraine, Chiara is supportively flanked by her husband Jusif and her parents, the Maltasong chairman and board members, make up artist Diane Nikolic, hairdressers David and Alex from Cut Coiffeur, as well as Paul Zammit-Cutajar from Bridge Productions, who manage the singer.

Unlike last year, very few fans have come to Kiev to support Malta’s singer. Undoubtedly, one of the factors was the higher expenses involved in travelling, accommodation and buying a ticket for the final night. In addition, a chartered flight that had been planned to fly directly from Malta to Kiev was cancelled for commercial reasons.