SOFIA - Hundreds of ecstatic fans waving Bulgarian flags turned out at Sofia airport to give a triumphant welcome home to Dara, the winner of the Eurovision Song Contest, after her surprise victory.
Leading figures from the fields of sport, music and politics in Bulgaria fired off messages of congratulations -- some of whom had even helped rally support for her before Saturday's voting.
Dara triumphed in Vienna with catchy floor-filler "Bangaranga", which swept the 70th edition of the world's biggest live televised music event.
Dara -- real name Darina Yotova -- was not among the favourites going into Eurovision week but the 27-year-old gained momentum with a strong performance in the semi-finals.
"I really like breaking rules," Dara told reporters in Vienna before flying home. "I'm really good with following my rules -- not anybody else's.
"We wanted to give to the audience something new and fresh, something that is not expected."
Eurovision highlighted that "the song ended up winning both sets of scores, which is the first time the juries and the public have chosen the same winner in almost 10 years, since Kyiv 2017".
Greeting the crowd turned out to meet her at the airport, she said: "As I see there are a lot of children here, this victory counts enormously for me, as it allows me to show them that anything is possible."
Then she delighed them with a fresh rendition of her winning song.
Bulgarian football legend Hristo Stoichkov, a former star at Barcelona, had been among those who got behind Dara's Eurovision campaign, calling on Bulgarians abroad to back her in the public vote.
Veteran Bulgarian pop star Lili Ivanova, who won the Soviet bloc equivalent of the contest, Intervision, posted a message of congratulations on Facebook.
"A historic success for Bulgaria!" she declared.
Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev hailed "a young artist who, thanks to her talent and professionalism, has managed to rise above all the complexities and prejudices surrounding the voting process.
"Bulgaria is looking forward to welcoming Europe and the world for Eurovision 2027!" he added on social media.
- AFP