'He brought laughter': Remembering snooker's taken talent 20 years on.

Everything the Leeds-born talent always wished to do was play snooker.

A love for the game, caught at the age of three with the help of a tiny snooker set on his parents' coffee table in Leeds, would lead to a pro playing days that saw him secure six significant titles in six years.

The present year marks two decades since the popular Hunter succumbed to cancer, days short to his twenty-eighth birthday.

But notwithstanding the tragic departure of a generational talent that rose above the pastime he cherished, his enduring mark on the sport and those who followed his career persist as powerful today.

'He just loved it': Early Beginnings

"We could not have predicted in a lifetime Paul would become a career sportsman," his mother recalls.

"But he just loved it."

His dad remembers how his son "cared little for anything else" except for snooker as a youth.

"He never stopped," he adds. "He would play every night after school."

After successfully badgering his dad to take him to a community venue to play on professional-standard tables at the age of eight, the budding player made the leap from miniature games with aplomb.

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.

Metoric Ascent: A Star is Born

With his family's urging 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 carving out a career in the game.

It paid off in spades. Within half a decade, their adolescent had won his maior professional trophy, the Welsh Open of 1998.

Considered one of snooker's most difficult competitions to win because of the lineup featuring only the top competitors, Hunter was victorious a trio of times, in consecutive years.

'Paul was fun': A Legacy of Character

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

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

"If you met him you'd take to him," Kristina states. "He brought joy. He'd make you relaxed."

Hunter's partner Lindsey, with whom he had daughter Evie, describes him as an "incredible, lively, and kind spirit" who was "witty, generous" and "always the last to leave the party".

With his easy charm, boyish good looks and honest interview style, not to mention his considerable talent, Hunter quickly became snooker's leading figure for the new 21st Century.

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

Facing Adversity: Illness and Resilience

In that year, a year that should have marked the height of his career, Hunter was found to have cancer and would later undergo aggressive treatment.

Multiple anecdotes from across the professional tour attest to the man's extraordinary dedication to keep promises to exhibitions, events and press interviews, all while going through treatment.

Despite harsh reactions, Hunter played on through the illness and received a tumultuous reception at The World Championship arena when he turned out for the World Championships that year.

When he succumbed in October 2006, snooker's family-like circuit lost one of its most popular brothers.

"The pain is immense," Kristina says. "It is a terrible thing for any mum and dad to suffer such a loss."

A Lasting Impact: Inspiring Youth

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

The Paul Hunter Foundation, set up before his death, would provide accessible training to youths all over the country.

The program was so successful that, according to reports, local youth crime rates in some areas fell sharply.

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

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

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

Never Forgotten: A Lasting Presence

Archive videos of their son's matches on YouTube help his parents stay "connected to him".

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

"We like to reminisce about Paul," she continues. "At first it was sad, but I'd rather somebody mention him than him not be recalled."

Although he never won the World Championship, the common opinion that Hunter would have secured snooker's greatest prize is ingrained in the sport's history.

The Masters, the competition with which he is forever linked, commences 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 spectacular skill with a cue, that will ensure he is always remembered.