Cyprus in the Eurovision Song Contest 2020
Cyprus was set to be represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 with the song "Running", written by Alessandro Rütten, Alfie Arcuri, Sebastian Rickards, Octavian Rasinariu, and Teo DK, and performed by Rütten himself under his stage name Sandro. The Cypriot participating broadcaster, Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation, internally selected its entry for the contest. To promote the entry, a music video was released and Sandro appeared at a pre-party in Sweden to perform it live. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the contest was cancelled in mid-March.
Background
Prior to the 2020 contest, the Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation had participated in the Eurovision Song Contest representing Cyprus thirty-six times since its debut in. Its best placing was in with "Fuego " by Eleni Foureira placing second. Before that, its best result was fifth, achieved three times: in with the song "Mono i agapi" performed by Anna Vissi, in with "Mana mou" performed by Hara and Andreas Constantinou, and in with "Stronger Every Minute" performed by Lisa Andreas. Its least successful result was in when it placed last with the song "Tora zo" by Elpida, receiving only four points in total. However, its worst finish in terms of points received was when it placed second to last in with "Tha 'nai erotas" by Marlain Angelidou, receiving only two points. After returning to the contest in following their one-year absence from the due to the 2012–13 Cypriot financial crisis and the broadcaster's budget restrictions, Cyprus has qualified for the final of all the contests in which it has participated.As part of its duties as participating broadcaster, CyBC organises the selection of its entry in the Eurovision Song Contest and broadcasts the event in the country. The broadcaster has used various methods to select its entry in the past, such as internal selections and televised national finals to choose the performer, song, or both to compete at Eurovision. In 2015, CyBC organised the national final Eurovision Song Project, which featured 54 songs competing in a nine-week-long process resulting in the selection of the Cypriot entry through the combination of public televoting and the votes from an expert jury. Since 2016, however, the broadcaster has opted to select the entry internally without input from the public. In July 2019, CyBC confirmed its intention to take part in the 2020 contest, and by September it was known that it would once again pursue an internal selection.
Before Eurovision
Internal selection
As part of the selection process, CyBC reportedly received over 120 submissions for consideration. Unlike the previous two years where Greek Swedish producer Alex Papaconstantinou penned a track and helped select a singer to perform it, the broadcaster was open to submissions of both artist and song and would select the entrant based on song choice with input from those in the local music industry. On 29 November, Sandro was confirmed as the Cypriot entrant for the 2020 contest by CyBC. Born in Germany to a Greek mother and American father, he participated in season 8 of The Voice of Germany. Sandro had also reportedly been in conversations with broadcaster Norddeutscher Rundfunk as a potential representative for Germany. Prior to Sandro's selection, it was reported that Ivi Adamou and Ian Stratis were also considered."Running" was revealed as the name of the selected song for Sandro on 11 February 2020 through a post on Instagram. "Running" was written by Sandro and Australian singer, writer, and composer Alfie Arcuri with a team also consisting of Sebastian Rickards, Octavian Rasinariu, and Teo DK. Sandro described the song as "something that comes straight from the heart". The song and its music video premiered on 6 March 2020 during CyBC's show Happy Hour. Robyn Gallagher of Wiwibloggs described it as a "deep-house style electro-pop song, with solid beats underscoring Sandro's vocals".