'He was a joy': Remembering the game's taken talent 20 years on.

Everything the young snooker player ever wanted to do was practice the game.

A love for the game, developed at the very young age of three with the help of a tiny snooker set on his parents' coffee table in Leeds, would result in a life on the tour that saw him win six significant titles in a six-year span.

This year marks a score of years since the popular Hunter succumbed to cancer, days short to his twenty-eighth birthday.

But notwithstanding the loss of a phenomenal skill that rose above the sport he adored, his influence and memory on snooker and those who knew him remain as vibrant now.

'His passion was clear': A Childhood Obsession

"We'd never have known in a lifetime our son would become a pro on the circuit," his mother says.

"However he just was passionate about it."

His dad recounts how his son "wasn't bothered about anything else" besides snooker as a youth.

"He was relentless," he adds. "He practiced every night after school."

After repeatedly pleading with his dad to take him to a local club to play on full-size tables at the age of eight, the budding player made the leap from miniature games with remarkable ease.

His natural ability would be nurtured by the former world title holder Joe Johnson, from nearby Bradford, at a now former establishment in the Leeds district of Yeadon.

Metoric Ascent: The Path to Glory

With his family's urging to do his homework regularly going unheeded as practice took priority, his parents took the "risk" of taking Hunter out of school at the mid-teens to fully dedicate himself to carving out a career in the game.

It proved a masterstroke. Within a short period, their young son 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 was victorious three times, in the early 2000s.

'A Cheeky Charm': A Legacy of Character

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

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

"When encountering him you'd take to him," Kristina adds. "He was enjoyable. He'd make you relaxed."

Hunter's widow Lindsey, with whom he had a child, describes him as an "amazing, young cheeky beautiful soul" who was "witty, generous" and "typically the final guest at the party".

With his easy charm, handsome features and straight-talking media manner, not to mention his immense skill, Hunter quickly became snooker's poster boy for the modern era.

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

A Brave Battle: Illness and Resilience

In 2005, a year that should have been the zenith of his talent, Hunter was found to have cancer and would later undergo cancer therapy.

Multiple stories from across the sporting world attest to the man's extraordinary commitment to honor obligations to exhibitions, events and press interviews, all while undergoing treatment.

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

When he died in autumn 2006, snooker's family-like circuit lost one of its best-loved members.

"It's awful," Kristina says. "I wouldn't wish 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 royal circles but in local sports centers across the UK.

The Paul Hunter Foundation, set up before his death, would provide no-cost coaching to young people all over the country.

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

"The idea was for a scheme to help get kids off the street," one official said.

The Foundation helped lay the groundwork for a significant coaching programme, which has provided playing opportunities to children all over the world.

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

Always Remembered: A Lasting Presence

Archive videos of their son's matches online help his parents stay "close to him".

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

"We like to reminisce about Paul," she concludes. "At first it was sad, but I'd rather somebody remember him than him not be spoken of."

While he never won the World Championship, the widespread belief that Hunter would have gone on to lift snooker's greatest prize is a part of the sport's folklore.

The Masters, the competition with which he is forever linked, starts 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 character, as much his brilliant talent on the table, that will ensure he is never forgotten.