Press release

Montréal, July 17, 2020 — Montrealer El Hachemi Benkhodja took home a whopping $289,755 while playing Odds of the Gods on Loto-Québec’s gaming website, lotoquebec.com.

Highlights

• On July 8, 2020, El Hachemi Benkhodja was coming back from the dentist’s office. With his jaw numb from the local anaesthetic, he decided to play Odds of the Gods online while waiting for the effects to wear off.

• It was a huge surprise when he realized, after diamonds popped up on-screen, that he’d won the $ 289,755 progressive jackpot! It certainly jolted him awake!

• Not believing his luck and wanting to avoid getting his wife's hopes up for nothing, he called Loto-Québec’s customer service team to know for certain that he’d won. As soon as he found out that he’d actually won the tidy sum, he went to tell his wife the good news. “It’s wonderful, what just happened. I’m so happy!” 

• The Montréal resident says he plans to share his winnings with his wife, parents and in-laws. He also wants to go on a trip that he’s been dreaming about for a long time: to go and discover his wife’s country of origin.

COVID-19: How to claim your prize

As part of the collective effort to stop the spread of COVID-19, and to protect the health of its customers and employees, Loto-Québec temporarily suspended in-person prize claims at its prize claim offices on March 18. We’re asking winners of prizes of $25,000 or more who have a physical lottery ticket to contact Loto-Québec’s customer service team.

Please note: Owners of physical lottery tickets with an expiry date between March 17 and September 17, 2020, inclusively who’ve won a prize will have an additional six months to claim it. We advise them to hold on to their ticket(s); they’ll be able to claim their prize when things get back to normal. The payment terms for prizes won on lotoquebec.com remain the same.

About Loto-Québec

Loto-Québec’s mission is to responsibly and efficiently manage games of chance in a controlled and measured fashion in the interest of all Quebecers. Entertainment is at the heart of its activities. In 2019, Loto-Québec paid out 88 prizes of $1 million or more. The Gagnant à vie and Grande Vie lotteries have provided 23 lucky winners with a lifetime annuity. Major prize winners are listed on the Winners page of the Lotteries website.