'He was a joy': Remembering snooker's lost great two decades on.

All the young snooker player always wished to do was compete on the baize.

A competitive passion, sparked at the age of three with the help of a miniature snooker set on his family's living room table in Leeds, would culminate in a life on the tour that saw him win six major trophies in half a dozen years.

This year marks two decades since the beloved Hunter succumbed to cancer, days short to his birthday marking 28 years.

But despite the tragic departure of a phenomenal skill that rose above the pastime he cherished, his legacy and impact on the game and those who followed his career remain as vibrant now.

'His passion was clear': Early Beginnings

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

"Yet he just adored it."

Hunter's father recalls how his son "wasn't bothered about anything else" other than snooker as a child.

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

After successfully badgering his dad to take him to a nearby hall to play on professional-standard tables at the age of eight, the young Hunter made the transition from home play with aplomb.

His raw skill would be coached by the 1986 World Champion Joe Johnson, from nearby Bradford, at a now closed venue in the north Leeds suburb of Yeadon.

Metoric Ascent: From Teenager to Champion

With his parents' pleas to do his homework often being ignored as practice took priority, 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 paid off in spades. Within five years, their still-teenage son had won his maior professional trophy, the late-nineties Welsh championship.

Considered one of snooker's most difficult competitions to win because of the involvement of exclusively the best, Hunter won on three occasions, in 2001, 2002 and 2004.

'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.

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

"Upon meeting 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 "amazing, young cheeky beautiful soul" who was "funny, kind" and "never the first to depart from the party".

With his easy charm, youthful appearance and honest interview style, not to mention his considerable talent, Hunter quickly became snooker's poster boy for the new 21st Century.

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

Facing Adversity: His Final Years

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

Multiple stories from across the snooker circuit attest to the man's extraordinary commitment to honor obligations to charity matches, tournaments, and media duties, all while going through treatment.

Despite gruelling side effects, Hunter played on through the illness and received a standing ovation at The famous Sheffield venue when he turned out for the World Championships that year.

When he passed away in October 2006, snooker's tight community lost one of its most popular brothers.

"It is tragic," Kristina says. "No parent should experience any mum and dad to go through that pain."

An Enduring Legacy: Giving Back

Hunter's true contribution would be felt not in palaces and castles 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, local youth crime rates in some areas plummeted.

"The goal was for a program to help offer a constructive activity," one coach said.

The Foundation helped lay the groundwork for a major coaching programme, which has opened up playing opportunities to children globally.

"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: Two Decades On

Classic footage of their son's matches on YouTube help his parents stay "in touch with his memory".

"I can access it and I can watch Paul anytime," Kristina says. "It's marvellous!"

"We are happy to speak about Paul," she continues. "Initially it was painful, 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 gone on to lift snooker's greatest prize is a part of the sport's legend.

The Masters, the competition with which he is most associated, commences 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 spectacular skill with a cue, that will ensure he is forever celebrated.