VANCOUVER — It could be an extreme case of delayed gratification for whoever has won $50 million.

A winning $50-million Lotto Max ticket has been presented to lottery officials, just days before the one-year deadline to claim the prize was set to expire.

The ticket's numbers were called on March 14, 2014, meaning the winner had until this weekend to claim the prize.

Speculation about the winning ticket has been fuelled over the past year, with a daily newspaper in Vancouver marking the looming deadline this week with a front-page story.

The B.C. Lottery Corp. says it's confirmed the ticket is genuine and that officials will now proceed with a verification process to determine the rightful ticketholder.

The winning ticket was purchased in Langley.