August 26 - After rolling over since January this year, Italy's
Superenalotto reached a record-breaking 146.9m euros last week, driving
lottery ticket sales in the country through the roof as lottery fans queued all
over the country to purchase tickets and their chance of becoming Europe's
newest multi-millionaire.
And while many feared that Saturday's (August 22, 2009) Superenalotto draw would
result in yet another rollover, on this occasion the numbers called matched a
single lucky ticket, which according to Superenalotto officials, was bought in
the small Tuscan village of Bagnone, which is about 120km NW of Florence.
While the lucky jackpot winner has still not come forward, in great Italian
style the 2000 residents of Bagnone have started celebrating in anticipation of
one of their own claiming the biggest single jackpot in European lottery
history. So, with Spumanti flowing like water, when the winner will come forward
is the big question.
Said Bagnone's mayor, Gianfranco Lazzeroni, 'I hope the winner knows how lucky
he is and knows how to handle such an event. This is an opportunity to raise the
visibility of this small corner of Italy.' The mayor also reportedly made a plea
to the winner to help fund a planned community centre at a cost of 1 million
euros.
According to some reports, their is speculation that the winner may be a
47-year-old local man. If does turn out to be him, it is probably not surprising
that he is choosing to keep out of the spotlight for as long as possible, and
try to avoid the growing media circus that is waiting to engulf him as soon as
he comes forward.
From the time of the draw, the lucky Superenalotto winner has 90 days in which
to claim his jackpot. Thereafter he'll lose his right to claim. According to
Sisal SpA, the lottery company that runs the Superenalotto, Italians spent
over 400 million euros on lottery tickets in July and 300 million euros so far
in August this year.
Previously the biggest single Superenalotto jackpot was 100 million euros, which
was won in 2008. Launched in 1997, the Superenalotto has been embraced by
Italians, especially during the current global economic recession, which has hit
Italians hard. The new Superenalotto jackpot will start from 38 million euros.
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