The retired taxi driver also shared what he plans to do with his most recent winnings
Credit: OLG
NEED TO KNOW
- Marcel Leclaire, 73, of Sudbury, Ontario, recently won about $65,000 playing an Ontario Lottery and Gaming (OLG) game
- This marks his third major lottery win in less than a decade
- The retired taxi driver shared what he plans to do with his most recent winnings while speaking to OLG
A Canadian man won big — for the third time in less than a decade — while playing his local lottery.
Marcel Leclaire, 73, of Sudbury, recently won about $65,000 (or 88,888 Canadian dollars) in the Ontario Lottery and Gaming (OLG) game, according to CTV News.
The retired taxi driver has now taken home nearly $3 million (or 4 million Canadian dollars) in OLG games. He won $735,200 in 2017, and $2.2 million in February 2025, per the outlet.
“I stood there in complete shock,” Leclaire, who has been playing the lottery regularly for 40 years, said while speaking to OLG about his most recent win, per CTV News.
“I shared the news with my brother and he was so happy for me,” he added.
Leclaire won his latest amount by playing the number 88 in the Instant Lunars 8 game.
“I’m a fan of [hockey player] David Pastrňák, and his jersey number is 88,” he explained. “I saw the number 88 on this ticket, so I decided to pick one up.”
Leclaire told OLG that he plans to buy a new home with his winnings — and save the rest for the future.
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While speaking to OLG in 2017 after his initial win, Leclaire explained that he played the lottery every morning after working the night shift in his taxi, per The Sudbury Star.
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“I play Encore every single time because it gives me another chance to win,” he said at the time, referring to a $1 add-on to a regular ticket.
He added that he initially didn’t realize just how much he had won.
“I checked my tickets at home and at first I thought I won 1,000 [Canadian dollars],” he said, before realizing he “had all the numbers” to win the big prize of 1 million Canadian dollars.
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He said he planned to use the money to spend more time with loved ones.
“I have seven brothers and sisters who live in Ontario and across Canada, including British Columbia. My dream is to travel west to visit family, taking time to see the country and reconnect with the people I love,” he said, per The Sudbury Star.
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