Boxing fan hopes to fulfil lifelong dream after £1m lottery win
A boxing fan from Merthyr Tydfil says he plans to fulfil a lifelong dream after winning a million pounds on the National Lottery.
Peter Rogers, 73, described the win as "the biggest victory of his life", after deciding to buy a ticket on a whim during his weekly food shop.
Known locally for his love of boxing, Peter hopes to travel to New York to watch a major fight at the famous Madison Square Garden arena.
He said the "life-changing" win will also allow him and his wife, Rosa, to buy a new home, making life more comfortable as she struggles with poor health.
Peter said: "Being able to provide a new home more suited to our needs means more to me than anything else I could do with the money – and I can't wait to start the house hunting."
The father-of-three matched five main numbers and the bonus ball in the Lotto draw on 6 September after picking a random selection of numbers, and initially assumed there had been "some kind of glitch".
He said: "The shop assistant scanned the ticket and the screen said I had to contact the National Lottery. I even went to another shop to double-check because I thought it couldn't be real.
"Even when I realised that there was no glitch, I didn't for a second think it would be a £1m win! It is still sinking in now that I have won such a life-changing amount of money – it's like hearing the final bell after the fight of your life."
Peter has followed boxing passionately since childhood and has even published a book on Merthyr Tydfil's boxing scene.
The town is famous for champions such as Johnny Owen, the first Welshman in more than 60 years to hold the British bantamweight title, and Eddie Thomas who won the British welterweight title in 1949.
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