'He brought laughter': Remembering the game's taken talent a score of years on.

Everything the young snooker player truly desired to do was compete on the baize.

A love for the game, developed at the age of three with the help of a miniature snooker set on his parents' coffee table in his Leeds home, would result in a life on the tour that saw him secure half a dozen major wins in six years.

The present year marks 20 years since the popular Hunter succumbed to cancer, mere days prior to his 28th birthday.

But notwithstanding the loss of a once-in-a-generation player that went beyond the sport he adored, his legacy and impact on the game and those who followed his career endure as strong as ever.

'The game was his life': The Formative Years

"We'd never have known in a lifetime Paul would become a career sportsman," Kristina Hunter recalls.

"Yet he just adored it."

His dad recounts how his son "wasn't bothered about anything else" other than snooker as a youth.

"He was relentless," he adds. "He competed every night after school."

After repeatedly pleading with his dad to take him to a local club to play on full-size tables at the age of eight, the aspiring talent made the jump from home play with aplomb.

His mercurial talent would be nurtured by the snooker legend Joe Johnson, from nearby Bradford, at a now former establishment in the area of Yeadon.

Metoric Ascent: The Path to Glory

With his family's urging to do his homework regularly going unheeded as practice took priority, his parents took the "risk" of taking Hunter out of school at the age of 14 to fully focus on forging a career in the game.

It paid off in spades. Within five years, their still-teenage son had won his first ranking title, the late-nineties Welsh championship.

Considered one of snooker's hardest tournaments to win because of the presence of elite players only, Hunter was victorious on three occasions, in consecutive years.

'A Gracious Competitor': The Man Behind the Cue

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

"He was incredibly composed did Paul," Alan says. "He got on with everybody."

"Upon meeting him you'd enjoy his company," Kristina continues. "He was enjoyable. He'd make you comfortable."

Hunter's wife Lindsey, with whom he had daughter Evie, describes him as an "incredible, lively, and kind spirit" who was "funny, kind" and "typically the final guest at the party".

With his easy charm, handsome features 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 dubbed 'The Snooker World's Beckham'.

A Brave Battle: Illness and Resilience

In that year, a year that should have signaled the zenith of his talent, Hunter was told he had cancer and would later undergo chemotherapy.

Multiple stories from across the professional tour attest to the man's extraordinary commitment to keep promises to charity matches, tournaments, and media duties, all while enduring treatment.

Despite gruelling side effects, Hunter kept playing through the illness and received a tumultuous reception at The famous Sheffield venue when he competed in the World Championships that year.

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

"It's awful," Kristina says. "It is a terrible thing for any mum and dad to suffer such a loss."

A Lasting Impact: The Paul Hunter Foundation

Hunter's true legacy would be felt not in royal circles but in snooker halls and clubs across the UK.

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

The scheme was so successful that, according to reports, issues with young people in some areas fell sharply.

"The idea was for a program to help get kids off the street," 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.

"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 access it and I can watch Paul whenever I wish," Kristina says. "It's a comfort!"

"We are happy to speak about Paul," she concludes. "At first it was sad, but I'd rather somebody talk than him not be mentioned at all."

Although he never won the World Championship, the widespread belief that Hunter would have eventually won snooker's top honor is a part of the sport's legend.

The Masters, the competition with which he is most associated, starts later this month. The winner will lift the trophy named in his honor.

But for all his successes, 20 years after his death it is Paul Hunter's spirit, as much his brilliant talent on the table, that will ensure he is always remembered.