'He brought laughter': Reflecting on the game's taken talent two decades on.

All the young snooker player truly desired to do was play snooker.

A sporting bug, developed at the tender age of three with the help of a small snooker set on his parents' coffee table in the city of Leeds, would culminate in a life on the tour that saw him secure six major trophies in a six-year span.

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

But notwithstanding the passing of a phenomenal skill that transcended the sport he adored, his legacy and impact on snooker and those who followed his career remain as vibrant now.

'He just loved it': A Childhood Obsession

"It was impossible to foresee in a lifetime Paul would become a pro on the circuit," Hunter's mum says.

"But he just was passionate about it."

His dad remembers how his son "wasn't bothered about anything else" other than snooker as a young boy.

"He was relentless," he notes. "He would play 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 leap from table top snooker with remarkable ease.

His raw skill would be coached by the snooker legend Joe Johnson, from the adjacent city, at a now closed venue in the area of Yeadon.

Quick Success: A Star is Born

With his parents' pleas to do his homework increasingly falling on deaf ears as practice took priority, his parents took the "risk" of taking Hunter out of school at the fourteen years old to fully concentrate on carving out a career in the game.

It proved a masterstroke. Within half a decade, their young son had won his maior professional trophy, the late-nineties Welsh championship.

Considered one of snooker's toughest events to win because of the involvement of elite players only, Hunter was victorious three times, in the early 2000s.

'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 deserted him.

"He had a great temperament did Paul," Alan says. "He connected with everybody."

"If you met him you'd take to him," Kristina continues. "He was enjoyable. He'd make you relaxed."

Hunter's wife Lindsey, with whom he had a daughter, describes him as an "amazing, young cheeky beautiful soul" who was "humorous, caring" and "typically the final guest at the party".

With his easy charm, boyish good looks and straight-talking media manner, not to mention his immense skill, Hunter quickly became snooker's pin-up for the new 21st Century.

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

A Brave Battle: Illness and Resilience

In the mid-2000s, a year that should have signaled the zenith of his talent, Hunter was told he had cancer and would later undergo chemotherapy.

Multiple accounts from across the professional tour attest to the man's extraordinary willingness to honor obligations to public appearances and promotional work, all while going through treatment.

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

When he passed away in the mid-2000s, snooker's family-like circuit 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 Foundation for the Future: Inspiring Youth

Hunter's true impact would be felt not in palaces and castles 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 program was so successful that, according to reports, issues with young people in some areas fell sharply.

"The aim remained for a scheme to help offer a constructive activity," one coach said.

The Foundation helped lay the groundwork for a significant coaching programme, which has extended playing opportunities to children globally.

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

Forever in Memory: 20 Years Later

Historic matches of their son's matches online help his parents stay "in touch with his memory".

"I can bring it up and I can watch Paul anytime," Kristina says. "It's a comfort!"

"We like to reminisce about Paul," she concludes. "Before it would be tears, but I'd rather somebody talk than him not be mentioned at all."

Even though he never won the World Championship, the highly probable notion that Hunter would have gone on to lift snooker's ultimate trophy is ingrained in the sport's history.

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

But for all his successes, a generation after his death it is Paul Hunter's spirit, as much his dazzling snooker ability, that will ensure he is forever celebrated.