'He brought laughter': Honoring the sport's lost great two decades on.

All Paul Hunter ever wanted to do was practice the game.

A love for the game, caught at the very young age of three with the help of a small snooker set on his family's living room table in the city of Leeds, would culminate in a professional career that saw him win six major trophies in a six-year span.

This year marks a score of years since the beloved Hunter passed away from cancer, just days before to his 28th birthday.

But in spite of the passing of a phenomenal skill that went beyond the pastime he cherished, his influence and memory on the game and those who knew him persist as powerful today.

'His passion was clear': The Formative Years

"It was impossible to foresee in a lifetime Paul would become a career sportsman," Kristina Hunter states.

"However he just was passionate about it."

His dad recounts how his son "showed no interest in anything else" except for snooker as a young boy.

"He was relentless," he notes. "He competed every night after school."

After persistently asking 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 jump from miniature games with aplomb.

His mercurial talent would be nurtured by the 1986 World Champion Joe Johnson, from nearby Bradford, at a now defunct club in the area of Yeadon.

Rapid Rise: From Teenager to Champion

With his parents' pleas to do his homework regularly going unheeded as the game dominated, his parents took the "gamble" of taking Hunter out of school at the age of 14 to fully dedicate himself to carving out a career in the game.

It proved a masterstroke. Within five years, their still-teenage son had won his initial major win, the Welsh Open of 1998.

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

'Paul was fun': A Legacy of Character

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

"He had a great temperament did Paul," Alan says. "He got on with everybody."

"Upon meeting him you'd take to 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 "wonderful, youthful, and fun personality" who was "witty, generous" and "typically the final guest at the party".

With his effortless appeal, youthful appearance and honest interview style, not to mention his immense skill, Hunter quickly became snooker's pin-up for the new 21st Century.

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

A Brave Battle: Illness and Resilience

In that year, a year that should have been the peak of his powers, Hunter was diagnosed with cancer and would later undergo cancer therapy.

Multiple anecdotes from across the sporting world speak of the man's extraordinary dedication to honor obligations to charity matches, tournaments, and media duties, all while undergoing treatment.

Despite harsh reactions, Hunter played on through the illness and received a rapturous applause at The famous Sheffield venue when he played at the World Championships that year.

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

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

A Foundation for the Future: The Paul Hunter Foundation

Hunter's true legacy would be felt not in royal circles but in snooker halls and clubs across the UK.

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

The initiative was so successful that, according to reports, issues with young people in some areas fell sharply.

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

The Foundation helped pave the way for a huge coaching programme, which has extended playing opportunities to children internationally.

"He would have embraced what we've done with the sport and where it is today," a chairman in the sport stated.

Always Remembered: A Lasting Presence

Historic matches of their son's matches via the internet help his parents stay "in touch with his memory".

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

"We like to reminisce about Paul," she concludes. "Before it would be tears, but I'd rather somebody mention him than him not be mentioned at all."

While he never won the World Championship, the widespread belief that Hunter would have eventually won snooker's greatest prize is ingrained in the sport's history.

The Masters, the competition with which he is most synonymous, begins later this month. The winner will lift the trophy named in his honor.

But for all his achievements, 20 years after his death it is Paul Hunter's character, as much his spectacular skill with a cue, that will ensure he is forever celebrated.