'He was a joy': Reflecting on snooker's departed star a score of years on.

Everything the Leeds-born talent truly desired to do was compete on the baize.

A competitive passion, caught at the age of three with the help of a miniature snooker set on his family's living room table in the city of Leeds, would lead to a life on the tour that saw him win six significant titles in six years.

Now marks 20 years since the popular Hunter passed away from cancer, just days before to his twenty-eighth birthday.

But despite the passing of a phenomenal skill that went beyond the sport he adored, his legacy and impact on the sport and those who were close to him remain as strong as ever.

'His passion was clear': The Formative Years

"It was impossible to foresee in a billion years Paul would become a career sportsman," his mother says.

"But he just was passionate about it."

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

"His dedication was constant," he adds. "He would play every night after school."

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

His raw skill would be coached by the 1986 World Champion Joe Johnson, from the adjacent city, at a now closed venue in the area of Yeadon.

Rapid Rise: From Teenager to Champion

With his mother and father's requests to do his homework increasingly falling on deaf ears 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 young son had won his maior professional trophy, the late-nineties Welsh championship.

Considered one of snooker's toughest events to win because of the involvement of elite players only, Hunter triumphed a trio of times, in consecutive years.

'A Cheeky Charm': His Enduring Personality

But for all his triumphs in the sport, away from the game Hunter's approachable nature never left him.

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

"If you met him you'd take to him," Kristina states. "He was enjoyable. He'd make you relaxed."

Hunter's widow Lindsey, with whom he had daughter Evie, describes him as an "amazing, young cheeky beautiful soul" who was "witty, generous" and "never the first to depart from the party".

With his effortless appeal, boyish good looks and straight-talking media manner, not to mention his prodigious ability, Hunter quickly became snooker's pin-up for the new millennium.

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

A Brave Battle: Illness and Resilience

In 2005, a year that should have marked the peak of his powers, Hunter was told he had cancer and would later undergo cancer therapy.

Multiple anecdotes from across the snooker circuit highlight the man's extraordinary dedication to keep promises to public appearances and promotional work, all while going through treatment.

Despite gruelling side effects, Hunter kept playing through the illness and received a tumultuous reception at The World Championship arena when he turned out for the World Championships that year.

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

"The pain is immense," Kristina says. "No parent should experience 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 community venues across the UK.

The foundation he inspired, set up before his death, would provide accessible training to youths all over the country.

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

"The goal was for a program to help get kids off the street," one coach said.

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

"Paul would have loved 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

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

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

"We are happy to speak about Paul," she continues. "Before it would be tears, but I'd rather somebody mention him than him not be spoken of."

Even though he never won the World Championship, the widespread belief that Hunter would have eventually won snooker's ultimate trophy 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 Paul Hunter Trophy.

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