In the short story "The Bet" by Anton Chekhov, Who won the bet, the banker or the lawyer?

In the short story "The Bet," the lawyer and the banker argue and place a bet related to capital punishment. The lawyer says life imprisonment is better than death, while the banker disagrees by saying that life imprisonment kills you slowly while capital punishment kills you quickly without pain. After many years, the banker finally wins the bet after the lawyer gives up. <Tab/>Some might not agree the banker won …

…be a good point, but being close to something only matters if you are playing horseshoes, not if you are placing a bet. It could also be said the lawyer won the bet because he gained so much knowledge from being imprisoned that he did not need the two millions, but that is not relevant to the question of "Who Won the Bet?". Technically or not technically, the banker won the bet fair and square.