Thaindian News

Madrid, Dec 24 (IANS/EFE) Holders of tickets sold in the northeastern town of Gra?en took the 4 million euro ($5.2 million) first prize, known as “El Gordo” (The Fat One) in the Christmas lottery in Spain that has plunged into an economic crisis.

Following tradition, the winning numbers were sang out by a choir from Madrid’s San Ildefonso school. The Gordo number, 58268, was sung by Maria Jose Posligua and Johan Fernandez.

This was the biggest El Gordo bounty in history.

Besides El Gordo, this year the cash amount for the second prize increased from 1 million euros ($1.3 million) to 1.25 million euros ($1.63 million) for the series, while the third-place number is worth the same as last year, 500,000 euros ($650,000).

Rounding out the list of the 13 biggest prizes were two fourth-place prizes and eight fifth-place prizes, each worth 60,000 ($78,000) for the series.

Created in 1812, Spain’s National Lottery favours spreading the wealth instead of hoarding it in one big jackpot.

Spaniards pitch in with friends, relatives and co-workers to buy tickets, which currently cost about $250 each, although they are also sold in one-tenth increments for roughly $25. With payouts for second-, third-, fourth- and fifth-place numbers, tens of thousands share in the bonanza.

Bars, restaurants and associations often organize collective purchases of tickets.

As occurs every Dec 22, millions of people were totally absorbed in the Christmas lottery drawing, which on this occasion will distribute 2.5 billion euros ($3.3 billion) in a country impacted by the economic crisis.

Gra?en is a village of only about 2,000 inhabitants in an agricultural region - but now the biggest El Gordo in the history of Spain’s Christmas lottery will help many farmers in the region deal with heavy debts incurred to keep their farms going.

A Romanian family, proprietor of the Carlitos bar distributed 38 of the Christmas El Gordo series.

Carlitos’ sister Mijaela, who works as a waitress in the bar, said almost all the customers are workers or immigrants who move through the area and they bought almost all the winning series’ fractioned lottery coupons known as “decimos” that were on sale.

Among them were Ana and Antonio, a married couple who manage another bar in a neighbouring area and who greeted all the vehicles that drove down the street.

“We’re stinking rich,” Antonio announced, and when asked about his immediate plans, pronounced the magic word: “A cruise.”

–IANS/EFE
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