'He brought laughter': Remembering the sport's lost great 20 years on.

All the young snooker player ever wanted to do was play snooker.

A competitive passion, developed at the age of three with the help of a small snooker set on his home's central table in Leeds, would culminate in a pro playing days that saw him secure six significant titles in a six-year span.

Now marks two decades since the adored Hunter passed away from cancer, just days before to his twenty-eighth birthday.

But notwithstanding the passing of a once-in-a-generation player that transcended the pastime he cherished, his legacy and impact on the game and those who followed his career persist as powerful today.

'His passion was clear': Early Beginnings

"It was impossible to foresee in a million years the boy would become a pro on the circuit," Kristina Hunter states.

"However he just was passionate about it."

Hunter's father recalls how his son "cared little for anything else" other than snooker as a young boy.

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

After persistently asking his dad to take him to a community venue to play on regulation tables at the age of eight, the young Hunter made the jump from miniature games with great skill.

His natural ability would be coached by the snooker legend Joe Johnson, from the adjacent city, at a now defunct club in the area of Yeadon.

Rapid Rise: The Path to Glory

With his mother and father's requests to do his homework regularly going unheeded as training came first, his parents took the "chance" of taking Hunter out of school at the mid-teens to fully concentrate on building a career in the game.

It proved a masterstroke. Within half a decade, their young son had won his initial major win, the 1998 Welsh Open.

Considered one of snooker's toughest events to win because of the lineup featuring only the top competitors, Hunter won three times, in the early 2000s.

'Paul was fun': His Enduring Personality

But for all his triumphs in the sport, away from the game Hunter's humble charm never left him.

"His demeanor was excellent did Paul," Alan says. "He connected with everybody."

"Upon meeting him you'd take to him," Kristina states. "He brought joy. He'd make you comfortable."

Hunter's partner Lindsey, with whom he had daughter Evie, describes him as an "wonderful, youthful, and fun personality" who was "witty, generous" and "typically the final guest at the party".

With his effortless appeal, boyish good looks and candid way with the press, not to mention his immense skill, Hunter quickly became snooker's leading figure for the modern era.

No wonder then, that he was nicknamed 'A Sporting Icon'.

Facing Adversity: Illness and Resilience

In the mid-2000s, a year that should have signaled the height of his career, Hunter was found to have cancer and would later undergo chemotherapy.

Multiple anecdotes from across the professional tour attest to the man's extraordinary willingness to keep promises to charity matches, tournaments, and media duties, all while going through treatment.

Despite difficult symptoms, Hunter kept playing through the illness and received a standing ovation at The Crucible Theatre when he turned out for the World Championships that year.

When he succumbed in October 2006, snooker's close-knit fraternity lost one of its best-loved members.

"The pain is immense," Kristina says. "No parent should experience any mum and dad to suffer such a loss."

A Lasting Impact: Inspiring Youth

Hunter's true impact would be felt not in high society but in community venues across the UK.

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

The initiative was so successful that, according to reports, local youth crime rates in some areas dropped significantly.

"The aim remained for a platform to help provide a positive outlet," one organizer said.

The Foundation helped establish the basis for a huge coaching programme, which has provided playing opportunities to children all over the world.

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

Always Remembered: A Lasting Presence

Classic footage of their son's matches on YouTube help his parents stay "close to him".

"I can bring it up and I can watch Paul at any moment," Kristina says. "It's marvellous!"

"We like to reminisce about Paul," she adds. "Before it would be tears, but I'd rather somebody mention him than him not be recalled."

Even though he never won the World Championship, the widespread belief that Hunter would have eventually won snooker's top honor is ingrained in the sport's legend.

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

But for all his accomplishments, two decades after his death it is Paul Hunter's character, as much his brilliant talent on the table, that will ensure he is forever celebrated.