33-637: Rotterdam Ahoy (formerly known as Ahoy Rotterdam or simply as Ahoy ) is a multi-purpose complex with a convention centre and an indoor arena located in Rotterdam , Netherlands . Opened originally in 1950, the current complex consists of three main venues: a fairs and events hall, a congress and conference centre, and the main venue the Ahoy Arena. The latter (informally known as the Sportpaleis , lit. ' Sport Palace ' ) opened on 15 January 1971 and
66-519: A convention center. In Francophone countries, the term is palais des congrès (such as the Palais des Congrès de Paris ) or centre des congrès (such as the Centre des congrès de Quebec). The original convention centers or halls were in castles and palaces . Originally a hall in a castle would be designed to allow a large group of lords, knights and government officials to attend important meetings with
99-424: A ship. Due the high demands, two further halls were added to the complex in 1980. The main arena was converted into a multi-use arena in 1988, when the arena's cycling track was dismantled due to disuse to in order to increase the capacity of the arena, which is still in demand for shows and other types of events. In 1998, the complex was expanded again to include a sixth event hall and a main reception hall (known as
132-510: A staircase that led to the square in front of the reception hall. The demolition of the last section started on 3 March 2017, after the bridge had become unsafe due to a truck colliding with one of the bridge's girders earlier that week. In 2005, a (now removable) cycling track was built in Ahoy for the revived Six Days of Rotterdam racing event. The main arena building was comprehensively modernised between 2010 and 2011. The arena's overall capacity
165-524: A teenager, as an escape from being bullied. He started his musical career at the Rock Academy in Tilburg , playing in a number of school bands, including his own, The Slick and Suited. Formed in 2013, the band went on to perform at Eurosonic Noorderslag . In February 2020, he revealed that he had oxygen deprivation at birth , and thus has had a motor disorder affect his right hand. Laurence participated in
198-502: A year. In July 2018, construction work began on an extension to the Ahoy complex. Rotterdam Ahoy Convention Centre (RACC) and RTM Stage, designed by Kraaijvanger Architects [ nl ] , opened at the end of 2020 and is directly connected to the Ahoy Plaza. The new premises, featuring a dual-purpose 7.000 concert hall and 2,750-seat auditorium/theatre (expandable to 4,000), adds an additional 35,000 square metres of floor space. On
231-585: Is bursting with variety. The power ballad clichés are now counterbalanced by gems of melody and (vocal) harmony." In a brief interview, Laurence cited Coldplay , Snow Patrol , Ryan Tedder , Sia , Sam Smith and Adele as influences. Laurence came out as bisexual in 2016, which he addressed publicly in an Instagram post in October 2018. During a press conference shortly before the Eurovision final, he affirmed his sexuality: "I am more than just an artist, I am
264-494: Is the largest multi-purpose venue in the Netherlands, with a capacity of 16,426 as of May 2019. The venue has a history dating back to 1950. After the devastation of World War II , the entire city of Rotterdam needed to be rebuilt, as practically nothing was left standing. Five years after the end of the war, the works at the city and their harbor was almost finished. To celebrate the last phase, an exposition called Rotterdam Ahoy!
297-573: The Dutch entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 , " Burning Daylight ", performed by Mia Nicolai and Dion Cooper . Also in the final of that year's Eurovision, he performed a cover of " You'll Never Walk Alone " as an interval act. Skyboy was released on 22 September 2023. De Volkskrant gave the album a four-star rating, saying: "'Skyboy' by Duncan Laurence, recorded in Los Angeles,
330-536: The Rotterdam Open and Six Days of Rotterdam every year and is one of the venues for Premier League Darts since 2016. Other international events held in the arena include: It was a venue for the European finals of Superstars , the televised all-around sports competition from 1975 to 1977 and again in 1979. In 2016, the venue hosted the mixed martial arts event UFC Fight Night: Overeem vs. Arlovski . In 2017,
363-530: The UK Singles Chart 's top 40, and two weeks later it peaked at number 29. In March, Laurence made his US television debut performing "Arcade" on Today , and later also performed the song's duet version alongside Fletcher on The Ellen DeGeneres Show . Following these promotional appearances, the song broke into the US Billboard Hot 100 chart, becoming the first Eurovision song in 25 years and
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#1732858868149396-432: The fifth season of The Voice of Holland , choosing Ilse DeLange as his coach. He advanced to the semi-finals before being eliminated. In March 2016, he left The Slick. Laurence graduated from the Rock Academy in 2017. He, with Jihad Rahmouni, wrote the music to K-pop duo TVXQ 's song "Closer" for their 2018 album New Chapter #1: The Chance of Love . In January 2019, Laurence was internally selected to represent
429-427: The 2nd and 3rd floors there are 35 break out rooms, varying in capacity from 50 to 1,000, that can be used separately or combined and a 2,300 m Expo Foyer which can be used for gala dinners, expos and receptions. In December 2023, construction of a new parking garage began on Ahoy's old P3 parking lot. The new garage, in between the new Ibis hotel and Ahoy forecourt, has room for 628 cars and is expected to be completed in
462-513: The 50th anniversary of Pinkpop Festival in Landgraaf, the first Dutch Eurovision winner to perform at the event. He replaced the Swedish duo First Aid Kit who dropped out for health reasons. On 23 October 2019, Laurence released his second single, " Love Don't Hate It ". It was also announced that he signed a recording contract with Capitol Records . In 2020, the artists' entrance at Rotterdam Ahoy
495-579: The EBU announced the cancellation of the contest due to the COVID-19 pandemic , and the arena was later utilised as a field hospital . Instead, Rotterdam Ahoy hosted the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 which took place on 18, 20 and 22 May 2021. The arena is one of the main venues for large concerts in Rotterdam. In June 2022, My Chemical Romance performed at the arena as part of their Reunion Tour . Lee Towers has
528-638: The Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 with his song " Arcade " and went on to win the competition, giving the Netherlands its first Eurovision win since 1975 . "Arcade" became one of the most successful Eurovision Song Contest winning entries on streaming platforms and international charts in recent history. Prior to Eurovision, Laurence was a semi-finalist in the fifth season of The Voice of Holland . Born in Spijkenisse , Laurence grew up in Hellevoetsluis . He began writing his own songs as
561-497: The Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 , held in Tel Aviv , Israel . He was nominated by DeLange, with whom he remained in contact after The Voice . His song, " Arcade ", was released in March 2019. Arriving as the main favourite to win, Laurence eventually went on to win the contest, having received a total of 498 points. He is the fifth Dutch entrant to win the competition, and
594-407: The first Eurovision winning song in 45 years to do so; it eventually peaked at number 30. At the Eurovision Song Contest 2021 held in Rotterdam , Laurence opened the first semi-final with "Feel Something". In the same event, he was awarded a Global Platinum record for one billion streams of "Arcade". However, he later tested positive for COVID-19 , which prevented him from performing live in
627-429: The first since Teach-In won the Eurovision Song Contest 1975 with the song " Ding-a-dong ". As a result of the following year's contest being cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic , Laurence is the longest reigning Eurovision winner, having held the title for two consecutive years. After his Eurovision victory, Laurence embarked on a concert tour across the Netherlands and Europe. On 10 June 2019, he performed at
660-601: The grand final. Pre-recorded footage of his performance, consisting of "Arcade" and a new single from Small Town Boy 's deluxe edition, " Stars ", was broadcast instead during the final. On 11 June 2021, the soundtrack album for the second season of the Hulu series Love, Victor was released. Among the artists featured on the soundtrack was Laurence with "Heaven Is a Hand to Hold", which he co-wrote with Leland , Jordan Garfield and Peter Thomas . Laurence also features on American singer Wrabel 's single "Back to Back", which
693-589: The king. A more ancient tradition would have the king or lord decide disputes among his people. These administrative actions would be done in the great hall and would exhibit the wisdom of the king as judge to the general populace. One of the most famous convention center debacles happened in France on June 20, 1789. King Louis XVI locked a group known as the Third Estate out of the meeting hall in Versailles. This led to
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#1732858868149726-415: The last quarter of 2024. In 2017, it was announced that a Pathé cinema would also be built adjacent to the forecourt. The artists' entrance to the main arena was renamed "Door Duncan" in 2020, in honor of Duncan Laurence (who was born in nearby Spijkenisse ) who in 2019 brought the Netherlands its first victory in the adult Eurovision Song Contest since 1975. It has hosted sports competitions such as
759-519: The plaza) designed by the architectural firm Benthem Crouwel . Another expansion take offices, catering facilities as well as smaller conference and meeting rooms were built. The main entrance to the Sportpaleis was also redesigned and the concrete footbridge from the Zuidplein (which was connected to a shopping centre and metro station) was demolished. The bridge was partly removed, so that it now ended at
792-833: The record for the number of concerts - 51 in total.. [REDACTED] Media related to Rotterdam Ahoy at Wikimedia Commons Convention centre A convention center ( American English ; or conference centre in British English ) is a large building that is designed to hold a convention , where individuals and groups gather to promote and share common interests. Convention centers typically offer sufficient floor area to accommodate several thousand attendees. Very large venues, suitable for major trade shows , are sometimes known as exhibition halls . Convention centers typically have at least one auditorium and may also contain concert halls , lecture halls , meeting rooms , and conference rooms . Some large resort area hotels include
825-529: The revolutionary group holding their meeting in an indoor tennis court. This was the first modern democratic conference center and lead to the Tennis Court Oath and the French Revolution . Duncan Laurence Duncan de Moor ( Dutch pronunciation: [ˈdʏŋkə(n) də ˈmoːr] ; born 11 April 1994), known professionally as Duncan Laurence , is a Dutch singer and songwriter. He represented
858-673: The venue again hosted the UFC for UFC Fight Night: Volkov vs. Struve . The 1997 and 2016 MTV Europe Music Awards and the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2007 were also held in the Ahoy Arena. Rotterdam Ahoy was also planned to be the host venue for the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 . It would have been the second venue to host both the junior and adult editions of the contest, after the Palace of Sports, Kyiv in Ukraine . On 18 March 2020,
891-482: The victims. After 1966, temporary accommodation was found at Hofdijk/Pompenburg in the center of Rotterdam, on the site of an abandoned airstrip. The current complex began to take shape in 1968. As the Sportpaleis, originally designed as an indoor velodrome , and its three annexes were completed in 1970. The official opening of the Sportpalais took place during Six Days of Rotterdam , a six-day track cycling race , and
924-507: Was held. The exhibition was held in a single hall that was built for the occasion and was located where the Erasmus MC is exactly today. The temporary exhibition hall was called Ahoy'-Hal and was used for both national and international events until 1966 when local authorities decided to demolish the hall. The hall was badly damaged during the North Sea flood of 1953 , when was used as shelter for
957-615: Was in the presence of the Prince Claus on 15 January 1971. However, the first fair already took place before the official opening, because in September 1970 Ahoy Halls were the location for the Femina fair. The complex's striking design won various national and international awards. The design of the venue took inspiration from the relation of the Dutch people and the water, with the building laid out like
990-457: Was increased, the capacity was increased by 5,000 (from 10,500) and could now hold around 15,000 spectators following the installation of new grandstands and extra seating. In addition to the new grandstands, Dutch lighting company Signify installed a new custom-made 1,000 m LED screen wall on the facade of the arena. Since April 2021, the complex has been equipped with 5,200 solar panels which supply large events with sustainable energy 195 days
1023-484: Was preceded by " Feel Something ", a collaboration with fellow Dutch DJ Armin van Buuren . In the second half of 2020, "Arcade" went viral on video sharing service TikTok , resulting in the song's new chart success and rise in streams on various platforms. In January 2021, "Arcade" became the most-streamed Eurovision song on Spotify , surpassing a record previously held by Eurovision 2019 runner-up Mahmood and his entry " Soldi ". On 12 February 2021, "Arcade" reached
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1056-829: Was released on 30 July off of the latter's debut album These Words Are All for You . "Wishes Come True", a standalone Christmas single, followed on 26 November. In early 2022, Laurence served as a coach on the sixth season of The Voice Kids Belgium , where a member of his team, Karista, won. On 3 August 2022, Laurence released "Electric Life", which serves as the lead single of his forthcoming second studio album Skyboy . A collaborative single with Rosa Linn , "WDIA (Would Do It Again)", followed on 21 October. Further singles include "I Want It All" in November 2022, "Skyboy" in March 2023, and "Anything" and "Rest in Peace" in August 2023. He co-wrote
1089-407: Was renamed "Door Duncan" in his honour. On 13 May 2020, Laurence released his first extended play (EP), Worlds on Fire , which included the singles "Arcade", "Love Don't Hate It", and " Someone Else ", along with two new tracks. His first studio album, Small Town Boy , followed on 13 November 2020. It was certified platinum in the Netherlands three days after its release. The album's release
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