<http://schema.org/articleBody>
"James Arthur is the fastest-selling X Factor winner in the show&amp;#039;s history. The singer&amp;#039;s winner&amp;#039;s single &amp;#039;Impossible&amp;#039; has sold over 187,000 downloads during its first 24 hours on sale, since he was crowded champion on Sunday evening (December 9).   The first-day sales figures have been released ahead of the track&amp;#039;s physical release on Wednesday (December 12), which will help boost sales further, reports the The Official Charts Company. Alexandra Burke&amp;#039;s &amp;#039;Hallelujah&amp;#039; was the previous fastest-selling winner&amp;#039;s track, after it sold 147,000 copies during its first 24 hours on sale back in 2008. Matt Cardle sold 112,000 copies of &amp;#039;When We Collide&amp;#039; in 2010, Leona Lewis sold 101,000 of &amp;#039;A Moment Like This&amp;#039; in 2006, while last year&amp;#039;s winners Little Mix sold 69,000 copies of &amp;#039;Cannonball&amp;#039; during its first day.   However, despite only selling 46,000 digital copies of &amp;#039;That&amp;#039;s My Goal&amp;#039; during its first day on sale in 2005, Shayne Ward went on to shift 289,000 copies of the track in 24 hours when it was released physically on the Wednesday. &amp;quot;There has been a lot said about X Factor&amp;#039;s popularity this year and questions have been raised that perhaps its momentum is beginning to wane,&amp;quot; Official Charts Company Managing Director Martin Talbot said. &amp;quot;But this amazing opening performance by James Arthur suggests that it remains the pre-eminent launch pad for new artists. Whether Arthur will match Shayne Ward&amp;#039;s 2005 total, only time will tell \u00E2\u20AC\u201C but he has a fantastic chance.&amp;quot; Ward&amp;#039;s &amp;#039;That&amp;#039;s My Goal&amp;#039; still retains its record for the best-selling opening week for an X Factor winner&amp;#039;s single, after selling a total of 742,000. Burke&amp;#039;s &amp;#039;Hallelujah&amp;#039; follows with 576,000 first-week sales, while Lewis is in third with &amp;#039;A Moment Like This&amp;#039; tallying up 576,000 sales. Watch James Arthur perform &amp;#039;Impossible&amp;#039; on the X Factor live final below:      "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.digitalspy.com/music/the-x-factor/news/a444440/x-factor-james-arthur-beats-little-mix-leona-lewis-to-become-fastest-seller/>