The Nobel Committee declined to award the Nobel Peace Prize in 1948 because "there was no suitable living candidate." This was meant as tribute to Mahatma Gandhi, who was assassinated earlier that year without receiving the Prize.
The 442nd Infantry Regiment, a largely Japanese American unit that served during WWII, did so while their families were held in internment camps. Their motto was "Go for Broke" and they were the most decorated unit in U.S. military history.
Chihuahuas have the biggest brains in the canine world.