Born 6 December 1951 (Chifeng, Inner Mongolia, China)
The world's second tallest man, at 7'9" (2.36m). Hit the headlines in December 2006 when he used his long arms to retrieve pieces of plastic from the stomachs of two ailing dolphins at an aquarium.
Former Mayor of Beijing, who was in charge during the Tiananmen Square protests. After falling out with Jiang Zemin, Chen was arrested, but released in 2006 on health grounds.