Finland is saying hallelujah to the Eurovision Song Contest after Lordi, its hard rock-playing entry, won the May 20 competition against 23 other countries.

“Hard Rock Hallelujah,” performed by band members dressed in monster costumes, earned a total 292 points from telephone voting across Europe, Turkey and Israel.

Latvia’s entry, the song “I Hear Your Heart” performed by the a capella group Cosmos, finished 16th overall with 30 points. Russia came in second with 248 points and Bosnia & Herzegovina was third with 229 points.

The 51st Eurovision Song Contest took place in Athens, Greece, thanks to Helena Paparizou’s victory in last year’s competition.

Last year, Latvia’s Valters un Kaža (Valters Frīdenbergs and Kārlis Būmeisters) took fifth place. Latvia’s Marija Naumova won the contest in 2002, which led to Rīga hosting the competition in 2003.

Latvia’s 4-2 victory over Norway on May 16 has assured it a 10th place finish in the 2006 International Ice Hockey Federation World Championship in Rīga.

Both Latvia and Norway already had been knocked out of competition for the quarterfinals, so the main purpose of this game was to determine the teams’ final standing. Latvia, the hometown team, ended the tournament with two wins and four losses.

Arvīds Reķis scored Latvia’s first goal on a power play 6 minutes 44 second into the first period. according to a game summary posted on the official championship Web site, IHWC.net. He was was helped by Mārtiņš Cipulis. Just under two minutes later Viktors Bļinovs, assisted by Aleksejs Širokovs, made it 2-0.

Norway got on the scoreboard 10:58 into the second period. Per-Age Skroder took advantage of a power play and got help from Tore Vikingstad and Anders Myrvold. Latvia regained the two-point lead at 16:02 when Lauris Dārziņš, with an assist from Miķelis Rēdlihs, scored.

Latvia’s edge grew by one more goal 13:16 into the third period. Aleksandrs Semjonovs scored on a power play with help from Leonīds Tambijevs. But Norway wasn’t about to go down without a final shot. Just 26 seconds from the end of the game, Kjell Richard Nygard, assisted by Tommy Jakobsen, made the score 4-2.

Goalkeeper Sergejs Naumovs stopped 16 of Norway’s 18 shots on the Latvian goal, while Norway’s Mathias Gundersen deflected 21 of Latvia’s 25 shots. Latvian players spent 12 minutes in the penalty box, compared to the Norwegians’ 18 minutes.

Latvia finished ninth overall in the 2005 championship in Austria and seventh overall in the 2004 championship in the Czech Republic.

(CORRECTED 16 MAY 2006)

The Latvian community in Belgium continues to grow, now numbering about 500, although it faces problems in educating its children, Foreign Minister Artis Pabriks learned during a May 15 meeting in Brussels.

The ethnic language school in Brussels lacks teachers of history and geography, while students who have graduated from Belgian schools face hurdles enrolling in Latvian colleges and universities, Pabriks was told, according to a press release from the ministry.

Pabriks will pursue the matter with the Ministry of Education and Science and will look into creation of a Latvian language track in one of the schools created for children of those working for European Union institutions, the ministry said.

The Latvian society in Belgium has about 40 members and the number is growing, Aldis Austers, deputy head of the society, told Pabriks. The society oversees the school, a choir and theatrical troupe. It is seeking funding from the Secretariat of the Special Assignments Minister for Social Integration.

Pabriks, according to the foreign ministry, thanked Gita Pāvila for her work in leading the Latvian choir in Belgium. He also noted the work of Ambassador Jānis Lazdiņs and his family, as well as that of Latvian National Committee Chairman Jānis Jerumanis, in maintaining Latvian identity in Belgium.