Lottery gets Olympic gold with record sales

Camelot, the National Lottery operator, has hit its target of raising £750m for the Olympic and Paralympic Games early after delivering another record year of sales.

The company also unveiled record returns to good causes and prize payouts to players last year, following total National Lottery sales jumping by 12.1 per cent to £6.53bn in the year to 31 March.

This performance helped Camelot succeed in raising £750m for this summer's two Olympics from sales of specially-designated lottery games, such as scratch cards and instant wins.

Andy Duncan, the managing director of Camelot UK Lotteries, said the £750m funding target for London 2012 is "part of an overall National Lottery contribution of up to £2.2bn towards the Games – making it the biggest-ever lottery-funded project to date and one that will leave a lasting sporting legacy for the entire UK".

Camelot has delivered £28bn to good causes and paid more than £41bn to players in prize money since the National Lottery's launch in 1994.