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

Everything the young snooker player ever wanted to do was compete on the baize.

A competitive passion, sparked at the tender age of three with the help of a miniature snooker set on his home's central table in Leeds, would lead to a professional career that saw him secure half a dozen major wins in a six-year span.

Now marks two decades since the beloved Hunter succumbed to cancer, days short to his twenty-eighth birthday.

But notwithstanding the passing of a once-in-a-generation player that transcended the pastime he cherished, his influence and memory on snooker and those who followed his career persist as strong as ever.

'He just loved it': A Childhood Obsession

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

"However he just adored it."

His dad remembers how his son "showed no interest in anything else" other than snooker as a youth.

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

After persistently asking his dad to take him to a community venue to play on full-size tables at the age of eight, the budding player made the leap from table top snooker with remarkable ease.

His raw skill would be nurtured by the former world title holder Joe Johnson, from neighbouring Bradford, at a now defunct club in the area of Yeadon.

Metoric Ascent: A Star is Born

With his mother and father's requests to do his homework often being ignored as training came first, his parents took the "chance" of taking Hunter out of school at the age of 14 to fully dedicate himself to forging a career in the game.

It was a resounding success. Within five years, their adolescent had won his maior professional trophy, the late-nineties Welsh championship.

Considered one of snooker's hardest tournaments to win because of the involvement of only the top competitors, Hunter won on three occasions, in 2001, 2002 and 2004.

'A Cheeky Charm': His Enduring Personality

But for all his achievements in competition, away from the game Hunter's down-to-earth charisma never faded.

"His demeanor was excellent did Paul," Alan says. "He was liked by everybody."

"If you met him you'd like him," Kristina states. "He brought joy. He'd make you comfortable."

Hunter's widow Lindsey, with whom he had a child, describes him as an "amazing, young cheeky beautiful soul" who was "humorous, caring" and "always the last to leave the party".

With his easy charm, handsome features and honest interview style, not to mention his prodigious ability, Hunter quickly became snooker's poster boy for the new millennium.

No wonder then, that he was christened 'The Beckham of the Baize'.

Facing Adversity: Illness and Resilience

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

Multiple stories from across the sporting world attest to the man's extraordinary willingness to keep promises to exhibitions, events and press interviews, all while going through treatment.

Despite difficult symptoms, 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 succumbed in the mid-2000s, snooker's family-like circuit lost one of its cherished personalities.

"It is tragic," Kristina says. "No parent should experience any mum and dad to suffer such a loss."

An Enduring Legacy: Giving Back

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

The charity in his name, 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 idea was for a scheme to help get kids off the street," one coach said.

The Foundation helped establish the basis for a major coaching programme, which has opened up playing opportunities to children internationally.

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

Always Remembered: 20 Years Later

Historic matches of their son's matches via the internet help his parents stay "close to him".

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

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

While he never won the World Championship, the common opinion that Hunter would have secured snooker's top honor is ingrained in the sport's legend.

The Masters, the competition with which he is most associated, commences later this month. The winner will lift the memorial cup.

But for all his accomplishments, two decades after his death it is Paul Hunter's spirit, as much his spectacular skill with a cue, that will ensure he is forever celebrated.