What if... Chiara wins

Elegant and effortlessly in control, Chiara had the crowds in a frenzy before she even started singing her song What If We, which emerged as the winner of the Malta Eurosong festival.

This is the third time that Chiara, Malta's queen of ballads, has clinched the title. And last night it was clear from the start that she was favourite - being the only one to receive a standing ovation from the crowd that packed the Malta Fairs and Convention Centre in Ta' Qali.

What If We, composed by Marc Paelinck with lyrics by Gregory Bilsen, earned 12,249 votes, while Eleonor placed second with the song Some Day (Paul Giordimaina and Fleur Balzan), which earned 9, 735 votes.

The jury was the first to choose and it shortlisted the 20 entries to the top three super finalists - Chiara; Q, with Before You Walk Away (also by Paul Giordimaina and Fleur Balzan); and Eleonor.

Malta has long been pining for Chiara's return and once she was among the jury's top three, there was no way that the televoting public was going to miss the chance to send her to Russia to compete in the Eurovision Song Contest.

"I felt I had to return to the stage. Too many people have been pushing me to come back and I felt the time was right," she said.

She returns with a new maturity and outlook on life, after giving birth to her 15-month-old daughter Ebony: "My life has changed completely. If before I used to say I'm busy, I didn't know what I was saying. She's taken over my life... and it's better with her in it."

Many felt the song What If We was not as powerful as her previous winners The One That I love (1998) and Angel (2005). What did she think?

"I feel every song is different. This one portrays the new me. I've matured and I've been through so much since 2005. I love this song," she enthused, dedicating the track to her father who passed away last year.

Dressed in a floor-length black dress, designed by Charles and Ron, Chiara did not miss a beat, giving a smooth rendition that oozed confidence.

The evening kicked off with a colourful performance by the Yada Dance Company, followed by the 20 entries. Valerie Vella and Pablo Micallef presented the show, which was organised for the first time by PBS.

The Eurosong, in the hands of executive producer Rueben Zammit, ran smoothly though it was tediously long at four-and-a-half hours.

Chiara will have another hurdle to surmount when she competes in the first Eurovision semi-final on May 12, before reaching the final. Having placed third and second, she's hoping for a homerun this time.

The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) is seeking to abolish the current system of 100 per cent televoting for the final night on May 16.

In all probability, during the heads of delegation meeting in March, the EBU will choose to have a system where on the final night the winning Eurovision song will be chosen through 50 per cent televoting and 50 per cent jury. Full televoting will be retained for the two semi-finals.

This is intended to minimise the neighbourly bloc voting, which has become a bone of contention in recent years and split the festival into East and West.