Turkey was represented at the Eurovision Song Contest 1997 with the song "", composed by Levent ÃÂoker, with lyrics by Mehtap Alnñtemiz, and performed by à Âebnem Paker. The Turkish participating broadcaster, the Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT), selected its entry through a national final. Both à Âebnem Paker and Levent ÃÂoker had represented .
=== === The Turkish Radio and Television Corporation (TRT) held the national final on 1 March 1997 at its television studios in Ankara, hosted by Bülend ÃÂzveren and Meltem Ersan. Ten songs competed, and the winner was determined by an expert jury. Songs #1, 3, 4, 5 and 8 were performed by the use of backing tracks; however, they were still backed by the orchestra with their respective conductors. Songs #6, 9 and 10 were played live, while songs #2 and 7 used full playback. ÃÂmit EroÃÂlu was the chief conductor in this preselection. His orchestra consisted of 49 musicians.
On the night of the contest à Âebnem performed 2nd in the running order, following Cyprus and preceding Norway. At the close of the voting, Dinle had received 121 points placing Turkey 3rd. This was the best result Turkey had ever reached at the contest up to that time, and will remain so until their victory in 2003. 18 participants voted for Dinle. The Turkish jury awarded its 12 points to Malta.