A winning lottery ticket holder has stepped forward to claim C$40m (£21.4m) in prize money just hours before the ticket was set to expire, according to the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation.

Tony Bitonti, OLG's director of media relations, told the BBC the ticket was validated through a lottery terminal. It had been set to expire at midnight on Wednesday.

The lottery corporation had been searching for the owner of the Lotto Max jackpot ticket. Almost a year had passed since the buyer purchased it on 28 October 2025 at a retailer in Grey County, Ontario.

OLG did not identify the winner by name and said it had contacted them to confirm they were the rightful owner.

"If the rightful ownership is determined, then OLG will hold a winner celebration and share their story with the media and the public as part of our winner disclosure process," the company said in a statement.

OLG had said Grey County - which includes the Blue Mountains and Owen Sound - is a popular tourist destination, which means someone…