'He brought laughter': Reflecting on the game's taken talent 20 years on.

Everything the Leeds-born talent always wished to do was compete on the baize.

A love for the game, sparked at the tender age of three with the help of a small snooker set on his home's central table in Leeds, would culminate in a life on the tour that saw him claim six major trophies in half a dozen years.

This year marks a score of years since the popular Hunter succumbed to cancer, mere days prior to his birthday marking 28 years.

But despite the tragic departure of a once-in-a-generation player that transcended the sport he adored, his influence and memory on the game and those who followed his career persist as vibrant now.

'He just loved it': The Formative Years

"We could not have predicted in a billion years our son would become a career sportsman," his mother says.

"However he just loved it."

Hunter's father recounts how his son "cared little for anything else" other than snooker as a youth.

"His dedication was constant," he says. "He practiced every night after school."

After repeatedly pleading with his dad to take him to a community venue to play on full-size tables at the age of eight, the aspiring talent made the transition from table top snooker with aplomb.

His raw skill would be developed by the snooker legend Joe Johnson, from neighbouring Bradford, at a now former establishment in the area of Yeadon.

Rapid Rise: From Teenager to Champion

With his parents' pleas to do his homework increasingly falling on deaf ears as training came first, his parents took the "gamble" of taking Hunter out of school at the age of 14 to fully focus on building a career in the game.

It proved a masterstroke. Within a short period, their still-teenage son had won his initial major win, the 1998 Welsh Open.

Considered one of snooker's toughest events to win because of the presence of elite players only, Hunter triumphed on three occasions, in the early 2000s.

'A Cheeky Charm': The Man Behind the Cue

But for all his success on the table, away from the game Hunter's approachable nature never left him.

"His demeanor was excellent did Paul," Alan says. "He was liked by everybody."

"When encountering him you'd like him," Kristina adds. "He brought joy. He'd make you feel at ease."

Hunter's wife Lindsey, with whom he had daughter Evie, describes him as an "incredible, lively, and kind spirit" who was "funny, kind" and "never the first to depart from the party".

With his easy charm, handsome features and honest interview style, not to mention his immense skill, Hunter quickly became snooker's poster boy for the new millennium.

No wonder then, that he was christened 'The Snooker World's Beckham'.

A Brave Battle: Illness and Resilience

In that year, a year that should have been the height of his career, Hunter was diagnosed with cancer and would later undergo chemotherapy.

Multiple accounts from across the sporting world speak of the man's extraordinary willingness to honor obligations to charity matches, tournaments, and media duties, all while enduring treatment.

Despite harsh reactions, Hunter played on through the illness and received a standing ovation at The famous Sheffield venue when he played at the World Championships that year.

When he died in the mid-2000s, snooker's close-knit fraternity lost one of its cherished personalities.

"It is tragic," Kristina says. "I wouldn't wish any mum and dad to go through that pain."

A Lasting Impact: Giving Back

Hunter's true contribution would be felt not in royal circles but in community venues across the UK.

The foundation he inspired, set up before his death, would provide free snooker sessions to young people all over the country.

The program was so successful that, according to reports, issues with young people in some areas plummeted.

"The aim remained for a platform to help offer a constructive activity," one official said.

The Foundation helped pave the way for a major coaching programme, which has provided playing opportunities to children all over the world.

"He would have embraced what we've done with the sport and where it is today," a senior official in the sport stated.

Forever in Memory: A Lasting Presence

Classic footage of their son's matches via the internet help his parents stay "in touch with his memory".

"I can watch it and I can watch Paul at any moment," Kristina says. "It's a comfort!"

"We don't mind talking about Paul," she continues. "Before it would be tears, but I'd rather somebody talk than him not be mentioned at all."

While he never won the World Championship, the widespread belief that Hunter would have eventually won snooker's greatest prize is ingrained in the sport's history.

The Masters, the competition with which he is most synonymous, begins later this month. The winner will lift the Paul Hunter Trophy.

But for all his achievements, two decades after his death it is Paul Hunter's spirit, as much his spectacular skill with a cue, that will ensure he is never forgotten.