'Paul was fun': Reflecting on snooker's lost great two decades on.

Everything the young snooker player always wished to do was practice the game.

A sporting bug, sparked at the age of three with the help of a tiny snooker set on his family's living room table in his Leeds home, would culminate in a professional career that saw him secure half a dozen major wins in half a dozen years.

This year marks 20 years since the popular Hunter died from cancer, mere days prior to his 28th birthday.

But despite the loss of a generational talent that went beyond the game he loved, his enduring mark on snooker and those who followed his career persist as strong as ever.

'The game was his life': A Childhood Obsession

"We could not have predicted in a billion years the boy would become a pro on the circuit," his mother recalls.

"However he just adored it."

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

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

After repeatedly pleading with 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 table top snooker with aplomb.

His raw skill would be nurtured by the former world title holder Joe Johnson, from the adjacent city, at a now defunct club in the Leeds district of Yeadon.

Metoric Ascent: From Teenager to Champion

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

It proved a masterstroke. Within a short period, their still-teenage son had won his first ranking title, the 1998 Welsh Open.

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

'Paul was fun': The Man Behind the Cue

But for all his achievements in competition, away from the game Hunter's humble charm never deserted him.

"He was incredibly composed did Paul," Alan says. "He was liked by everybody."

"When encountering him you'd like him," Kristina continues. "Paul was fun. He'd make you comfortable."

Hunter's wife Lindsey, with whom he had a child, describes him as an "incredible, lively, and kind spirit" who was "humorous, caring" and "never the first to depart from the party".

With his effortless appeal, handsome features and straight-talking media manner, not to mention his immense skill, Hunter quickly became snooker's pin-up for the modern era.

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

Facing Adversity: A Fight Against Cancer

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

Multiple stories from across the snooker circuit speak of the man's extraordinary dedication to keep promises to exhibitions, events and press interviews, all while undergoing treatment.

Despite difficult symptoms, Hunter kept playing through the illness and received a rapturous applause at The World Championship arena when he competed in the World Championships that year.

When he succumbed in the mid-2000s, snooker's family-like circuit lost one of its most popular brothers.

"It's awful," Kristina says. "It is a terrible thing for any mum and dad to lose a child."

An Enduring Legacy: Inspiring Youth

Hunter's true legacy would be felt not in palaces and castles but in community venues across the UK.

The charity in his name, set up before his death, would provide accessible training to children all over the country.

The scheme was so successful that, according to reports, local youth crime rates in some areas dropped significantly.

"The goal was for a scheme to help provide a positive outlet," one coach said.

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

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

Never Forgotten: 20 Years Later

Historic matches of their son's matches online help his parents stay "connected to him".

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

"We don't mind talking about Paul," she concludes. "At first it was sad, but I'd rather somebody mention him than him not be recalled."

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

The Masters, the competition with which he is most synonymous, 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 brilliant talent on the table, that will ensure he is never forgotten.