FOR the Chinese, 2008 was an unforgettable year. There were paralyzing snow storms, a devastating earthquake and, of course, the Beijing Olympics and China's first space walk. It wasn't just events that made history. Notable figures and groups also made their mark.

The following are Xinhua's 10 most memorable faces of 2008, as reported by Tian Ye.

Zhai Zhigang

It was a small step by Zhai Zhigang, but when China's first taikonaut walked in space, he consolidated the country's place in scientific history.

On September 27, millions of Chinese watched his maiden 20-minute space walk on TV. The feat made China the third country to successfully send a man on a spacewalk, after Russia and the United States.

When Zhai popped out of the space craft in a Chinese-designed space suit, the 42-year-old became a national hero.

The son of a snack vendor, Zhai dreamed of flying in space as an impoverished teenager. He was selected as the backup taikonaut for China's first manned spaceflight in 2003 and then again for the second mission in 2005. He missed out on both.

Through perseverance, Zhai presented the world with a face of courage that was out of this world.



Justin Yifu Lin

In February, Justin Yifu Lin became the first person from a developing country to be appointed World Bank chief economist and senior vice president for development economics.

A self-made man, Lin earned a PhD from the University of Chicago. He returned to China in the 1980s and became the founder and director of the China Center for Economic Research at prestigious Peking University.

Lin is well known for his work on fiscal decentralization, enterprise reform, urban and rural modernization and agricultural innovation and reform.

His appearance on the world stage early this year, set the country alight with hope that a Chinese would make contributions to economic globalization.



Wu Jiafang

Wu Jiafang became a hero after the May 12 earthquake for trying to preserve the dignity of his dead wife.

He was photographed with her body tied to him while he was on his motorbike. After retrieving her from the quake's rubble, he wanted to drive her body to their home and bury her there.

Wu's image came to represent the heroic, selfless acts of many during the earthquake, including those of policewoman Jiang Min.

She continued to help quake victims despite losing 10 family members.

There was also middle school teacher Tan Qianqiu who sheltered his four students from quake debris with his arms.

As time goes by, their faces still linger in the memory of the Chinese people who were deeply impacted by what happened in Sichuan.



Huang Guangyu

A police investigation of the Chinese mainland's richest man, Huang Guangyu, made Chinese rethink trying to become a much-admired business tycoon.

Huang, 39, whose personal wealth is estimated at 43 billion yuan (over US$6 billion), was detained on November 24 on claims that he had manipulated share trading in two listed companies, Sanlian Commercial Co and Beijing Centergate Technologies Co.

Nearly a month after his detainment, Huang was removed as the chairman of China's top electronics retailer GOME.

His case revealed legal loopholes China had ignored while concentrating on its economic growth. His detention also inspired people to call for a healthier market environment for business owners to compete in.



Zhou Zhenglong

The real power of the Internet was realized in 2008 as Netizens became empowered to expose scandals and corruption.

Zhou Zhenglong, a farmer from northwest China's Shaanxi Province, became a household name after being exposed for faking photos of a tiger subspecies believed extinct in the wild in China.

The pictures, created by Photoshop, prompted widespread media speculation, but surprisingly won the support of local forestry authorities.

Netizens, however, found an old Lunar New Year poster showing a tiger that looked exactly like the one in Zhou's photo. He was then arrested and in November, sentenced to two and a half years in prison with a three-year reprieve.

The scandal also brought down 13 government staff in Shaanxi who were either sacked or reprimanded.



Volunteers

Generosity, friendly attitudes and selflessness during the May 12 earthquake as well as the Olympics places volunteers on 2008's list.

Statistics released by the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Youth League show more than 5 million volunteers helped with relief work after the magnitude-8.0 Sichuan earthquake.

Around 1.7 million people volunteered during the Beijing Olympics, according to Liu Jian, director of the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games Volunteer Department.

Volunteers' smiles were the "name card" China presented to the world.



Tainted milk victims

China's dairy scandal was exposed in September after babies who were fed milk powder, produced by the Hebei Province-based Sanlu Group, developed kidney stones.

Hundreds of thousands of parents took their children to hospitals for tests and medication, some traveling long distances.

China says melamine-tainted products killed six babies. Another 294,000 infants suffered from urinary problems such as kidney stones. As of November 27, 861 babies were still hospitalized.

The scandal led to the resignation of China's chief quality supervisor Li Changjiang. Several officials were sacked, arrests were made and the government is working on overhauling the country's dairy industry.



Soldiers

Chinese soldiers have been called a group that contributes the most while reaping the least.

In December, naval vessels deployed to the coast of Somalia to escort merchant ships threatened by pirates.

Disaster response and security mainly occupied soldiers' time in 2008.

More than 130,000 soldiers, armed police and paramilitary personnel engaged in quake-relief work, according to official statistics.

Before the Beijing Olympic Games, an anti-terrorist force of nearly 100,000 commandos, police and troops was placed on high alert in case of attempted terrorist attacks. They provided security throughout the Games.

Migrant workers

Farmers who travel to work in cities from rural areas have been a driving force behind China's fast-growing economy, often working in construction, at factories, restaurants and serving as domestic help and drivers.

For the first time in 2008, three migrant workers, Zhu Xueqin, Hu Xiaoyan and Kang Houming, were elected as deputies to the National People's Congress, China's legislature.

They became the first representatives for the country's 210 million migrant laborers.



One-kid generation

The first generation born after implementation of China's one-child policy in 1978 began to turn 30 in 2008.

Better education and increased material wealth makes them more worldly and open-minded than previous generations.

To some extent, they represent the emerging China with an optimistic, confident and open outlook.

However, some question whether their "self-centered qualities," such as obsession with celebrity and hyper-consumerism bode well for China's future.