Céline Dion was reportedly forced to withdraw from a surprise appearance at this year’s Eurovision Song Contest

Céline Dion was reportedly forced to withdraw from a planned appearance at this year’s Eurovision Song Contest in Switzerland after suffering a health scare.

The singer, who won the contest for Switzerland in 1988, appeared on screen during the first semi-final of this year’s contest, but not on stage or at the final, despite speculation from fans after being spotted in Basel at the time.

During her onscreen appearance at the semi-final, Dion told viewers that she would “love nothing more” than to be at the contest, and said winning it was “a life-changing moment” for her.

French news site Le Parisien (via Music News) reported that she was supposed to sing her winning track ‘Ne Partez Pas Sans Moi’ in a surprise performance, but a medical episode prevented her from taking the stage. A tribute to the singer performed by contestants from the 2024 contest went ahead instead.

The Mirror additionally reported that Dion had suffered a seizure after arriving at the venue.

It comes after Dion made a triumphant return to the stage at the 2024 Paris Olympics Opening Ceremony, her first live performance since she revealed she suffers from stiff person syndrome (SPS).

Dion has been unflinching open about its affect on her voice in her documentary, I Am: Celine Dion, telling documentarians: “I can’t use my voice yet,” crying as she admitted: “Music… I miss it a lot. But also, the people. I miss them.”

Prior to her comeback last year, Dion last took to the stage in 2020 in New York, and was set to embark on a world tour last year but was forced to axe all scheduled dates due to her condition, which affects the brain and spinal cord, causing muscle stiffness, posture problems, sensory issues, as well as painful spasms.

As for this year’s Eurovision contest – won by Austria – the event was mired in controversy after over 70 former Eurovision contestants signed a letter calling to ban Israel. The letter said that the inclusion of Israel in the 2024 edition led to it being “the most politicised, chaotic and unpleasant in the competition’s history”.

It also accused [Israeli broadcaster] KAN of being “complicit in Israel’s genocide against the Palestinians in Gaza and the decades-long regime of apartheid and military occupation against the entire Palestinian people”, and claimed that the EBU was “normalising and whitewashing its crimes”.

During the ceremony, a crew member was reportedly hit with paint after two people tried to disrupt Israel’s performance. A man and a woman were escorted from the venue and handed over to police.

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