University Student Living in Ontario... Youngest Ever Large Jackpot Winner
"I Will Become a Doctor to Help the Community... Also Travel with Family"
[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyun-jung] A Canadian university student who just turned 18, the legal age to purchase lottery tickets, won the first prize with the very first lottery ticket she ever bought.
On the 4th (local time), foreign media including the UK’s BBC and Canada’s Toronto Sun reported the story of Juliet Lamoureux (18, female) from Sault Ste. Marie in southern Ontario, who recently won the first prize in the Canadian lottery. She won 48 million Canadian dollars (approximately 44.8 billion KRW) on the 3rd with a lottery ticket she purchased in early last month. The Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation stated, "This is the first time an 18-year-old has won such a large amount," and added, "Lamoureux is also the youngest person in Canadian lottery history to win the jackpot." The legal age to purchase lottery tickets in Canada is 18, and Lamoureux had just recently celebrated her 18th birthday.
18-year-old college student Juliette Lamour, who recently won first prize in the Canadian lottery. [Photo by Ontario Lottery Corporation website]
As a 'lottery novice,' she was clumsy from buying the ticket to checking the results. She didn’t even know which lottery to buy. When she went to the lottery retailer and called her father, he told her to "buy a Lotto 6/49 Quick Pick." Canada’s 6/49 requires matching 6 numbers out of 49, which has a lower odds of winning first prize compared to Korea’s 6/45 Lotto.
Lamoureux forgot to check whether she had won even after the draw date passed. However, rumors spread around lottery retailers that "someone has a 48 million dollar 649 Golden Ball jackpot ticket," and "a teenage girl bought the ticket." Hearing these rumors, Lamoureux, who was working part-time at a pharmacy, suddenly remembered that she had bought a lottery ticket last month.
A colleague who was working with her offered to check her ticket through the lottery app. The moment the ticket was scanned, a winning bell rang and the phrase "Big Winner" appeared on the phone screen. The colleague was so shocked that they sat down immediately. Everyone around them cheered loudly. When Lamoureux called home to share the news, her mother told her to "come home after finishing work." However, the pharmacy owner let her leave early.
From an ordinary university student to a millionaire, Lamoureux’s dream is to "become a doctor and help the local community." She said, "After finishing my studies, I will travel the world with my family," and expressed her hope to "experience various countries, study their history and culture, and taste their food."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
