'He was a joy': Reflecting on the sport's departed star 20 years on.
All Paul Hunter ever wanted to do was play snooker.
A love for the game, caught at the very young age of three with the help of a miniature snooker set on his parents' coffee table in Leeds, would culminate in a life on the tour that saw him claim six significant titles in half a dozen years.
Now marks a score of years since the adored Hunter succumbed to cancer, mere days prior to his 28th birthday.
But in spite of the tragic departure of a phenomenal skill that transcended the game he loved, his enduring mark on the game and those who knew him remain as vibrant now.
'He just loved it': The Formative Years
"It was impossible to foresee in a lifetime Paul would become a professional snooker player," Kristina Hunter recalls.
"Yet he just was passionate about it."
Hunter's father recounts how his son "cared little for anything else" besides snooker as a young boy.
"He was relentless," he notes. "He practiced every night after school."
After persistently asking his dad to take him to a nearby hall to play on regulation tables at the age of eight, the young Hunter made the transition from table top snooker with remarkable ease.
His natural ability would be nurtured by the 1986 World Champion Joe Johnson, from the adjacent city, at a now defunct club in the area of Yeadon.
Rapid Rise: The Path to Glory
With his family's urging to do his homework regularly going unheeded as practice took priority, his parents took the "gamble" of taking Hunter out of school at the mid-teens to fully concentrate on building a career in the game.
It was a resounding success. Within half a decade, their young son had won his initial major win, the Welsh Open of 1998.
Considered one of snooker's most difficult competitions to win because of the lineup featuring only the top competitors, Hunter was victorious three times, in 2001, 2002 and 2004.
'A Cheeky Charm': His Enduring Personality
But for all his achievements in competition, away from the game Hunter's humble charm never faded.
"He was incredibly composed did Paul," Alan says. "He got on with everybody."
"Upon meeting him you'd like him," Kristina states. "He brought joy. He'd make you feel at ease."
Hunter's widow Lindsey, with whom he had a daughter, describes him as an "incredible, lively, and kind spirit" who was "witty, generous" and "typically the final guest at the party".
With his natural likability, handsome features and straight-talking media manner, not to mention his immense skill, Hunter quickly became snooker's leading figure for the new 21st Century.
No wonder then, that he was christened 'A Sporting Icon'.
Facing Adversity: A Fight Against Cancer
In that year, a year that should have marked the peak of his powers, Hunter was found to have cancer and would later undergo cancer therapy.
Multiple accounts from across the professional tour highlight the man's extraordinary commitment to fulfill commitments to charity matches, tournaments, and media duties, all while going through treatment.
Despite harsh reactions, Hunter continued to compete through the illness and received a tumultuous reception at The World Championship arena when he competed in the World Championships that year.
When he died in October 2006, snooker's tight community lost one of its cherished personalities.
"It's awful," Kristina says. "It is a terrible thing for any mum and dad to go through that pain."
A Lasting Impact: The Paul Hunter Foundation
Hunter's true impact would be felt not in palaces and castles but in community venues 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 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 organizer said.
The Foundation helped establish the basis for a huge coaching programme, which has extended playing opportunities to children all over the world.
"He would have embraced what we've done with the sport and where it is today," a chairman in the sport stated.
Forever in Memory: 20 Years Later
Archive videos of their son's matches on YouTube 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 talk than him not be spoken of."
Even though he never won the World Championship, the widespread belief 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, starts later this month. The winner will lift the memorial cup.
But for all his accomplishments, 20 years after his death it is Paul Hunter's personality, as much his dazzling snooker ability, that will ensure he is never forgotten.
