countries competed in the contest, which saw the debut entries from the , , and , the latter two as independent countries for the first time. 28 countries competed in the single semi-final, the biggest number of participants ever seen in a Eurovision show. Serbia became only the second country to win on its debut appearance, represented by Marija Šerifović and "Molitva". The Eurovision Song Contest 2008 was the fifty-third edition of the contest, organised by Radio-televizija Srbije (RTS) and held on 20, 22 and 24 May 2008 at the Belgrade Arena in Belgrade, Serbia. A new record 43 countries competed in the contest, with and making their first appearances in the contest. A second semi-final was introduced at this contest, with all countries except the hosts and the "Big Four" now competing on one of the two semi-finals. Russia gained its first contest win, represented by Dima Bilan and the song "Believe"; it was Bilan's second appearance in the contest, having previously come second for Russia in 2006. The Eurovision Song Contest 2009 was the fifty-fourth edition of the contest, organised by Channel One (C1R) and held on 12, 14 and 16 May 2009 at the Olimpiyskiy Arena in Moscow, Russia. 42 countries competed, including Slovakia in its first appearance in 11 years. Georgia's entry was embroiled in controversy, when it was accused of being critical of Russian leader Vladimir Putin following the recent Russo-Georgian War; after requests made by the EBU to change the lyrics were rejected, Georgia subsequently withdrew. Juries returned to the contest this year, with the points awarded in the final decided by an equal mix of jury and televoting; the qualifiers from the semi-finals however remained predominantly decided by televoting in this contest. Norway secured its third contest win, as Alexander Rybak earned a runaway victory with "Fairytale"; with 387 points, Rybak earned the highest points total yet seen in the contest, which remains the highest total under this system. 2010s The Eurovision Song Contest 2010 was the fifty-fifth edition of the contest, organised by NRK and held on 25, 27 and 29 May 2010 at the Telenor Arena in Oslo, Norway. 39 countries participated in total, with Georgia returning after a year's absence. Several countries withdrew for this year due to the effects of the 2007–2008 financial crisis, including Andorra which has yet to make a reappearance, with the crisis also impacting the