Obscure facts ya know!

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Before July 11, 1957, the world record of men's 1500 m was 3:40.6 by István Rózsavölgyi, Hungary. On the given day, something so bizarre happened it requires mention.

At certain anniversary games in Turku, Finland, the 1500 meters medal table turn out to be

1. Olavi Salsola 3:40.2
2. Olavi Salonen 3:40.2
3. Olavi Vuorisalo 3:40.3

Even the bronze medalist would have made new world record if competing alone. That aside. Have a look at the names. Not only are all three first names identical, their last names bear a remarkable resemblance with each other (sola/salo/salo). All three were born in 1933.

There is a town in Washington state called Point Roberts that is actually an exclave of the Canadian province of British Columbia. In other words, it's part of the continental United States, but is not geographically connected to it. Thusly, it can only be reached by going through Canada.

On a personal note, while I do live close to said town, I've never been there before.

A few true Sochi, Russia facts:

- Maria Sharapova's tennis career began in the town.

- It can get up to 80F (27C) in the summer there.

Chris Evert once had a tennis match stopped to search the court for her new diamond bracelet, which had come off during the game.

This is why that style of bracelet is known as 'tennis bracelet'.

There are three towns in the U.S. that have the name Santa Claus.

Elizabeth Taylor disliked and was extremely jealous of Sophia Loren.

Tomatoes only came to Italy from South America in the 16th century. That's right. Pasta with tomato sauce is not that ancient.

The New York Mets have MLB's only foul poles that are not yellow. In the 1970s, when the team was playing at Shea Stadium, they were changed to become orange. This continues at Shea's successor, Citi Field.

Most dogs don't like hugging.

Probably not. However,

http://www.dogster.com/lifestyle/dogs-u ... d-intimacy

Thanks for the link Krabo. That's a really good article.*
As it said, some dogs in a very trusting relationship will relax and enjoy hugs. My dog is an example of this. He knows the command 'snuggle', and will always come up for a hug after breakfast. It's one of the highlights of my day.



*I may be slightly biased as she uses the word 'behoove', which is a particular favourite of mine.

Jean Harlow's stylist used bleach, ammonia, and soap flakes to bleach her hair 'Platimum Blonde'.

Canada has the longest coastline of any country in the world at 151,600 miles/243,977 kilometers.

John Wilkes Booth's body was never identified by his family.

They only saw the skeleton, or skull, many years after his supposed shooting.

There has always been serious doubt as to the identity of the man shot and identified as Booth.

In Canadian football, the end zones are 20 yards long. Prior to 1986, they were 25 yards long. The reason for the change? When B.C. Place in Vancouver was built from 1981-3, it tried to accomodate a field that was 160 yards long but the designer forgot to include a buffer zone between the deadball line and the wall - thusly, the CFL allowed the truncated endzones, which led to the rule change three years later.