Sarbel, this year's Greek contestant in the Eurovision Song Contest, was presented yesterday with the gold disc for the sales of Yassou Maria. Sarbel was also honoured by OGAE Greece with a plaque for his performance in Helsinki.

In a tightly packed Sisha Club on Tuesday night, Sarbel received his gold disc for the sales of Yassou Maria together with composer Marcus Englof and lyricist Alex Papakonstantinou. The popular Greek singer was praised for his commercial success in Greece as well as for his hard work and character. In his speech, Sarbel said that he came to Greece a London bred Cypriot-Lebanese but now he feels 100% Greek. He dedicated his second gold disc to his mother who was present as always.

Afterwards, OGAE Greece president, Antonis Karatzikos, presented Sarbel with a plaque on behalf of the members of the local fun club. The plaque was inscribed with the following: "To our Sarbel, thank you for everything, you made us proud. Always by your side, OGAE Greece.

Sarbel is a good example of the positive impact a satisfactory result can have on the career of an artist. Although he did not win the Eurovision Song Contest, the Greek public seems to feel that he did his best on stage and as a result his popularity has grown significantly.

Click here to see the photographs from the evening in our Gallery.

Sarbel performs Yassou Maria

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwCPydwmiWU

Sarbel's new single Mi chica

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FxMAiwNeKzQ