'He brought laughter': Honoring the sport's lost great 20 years on.

All Paul Hunter truly desired to do was compete on the baize.

A competitive passion, caught at the age of three with the help of a tiny snooker set on his family's living room table in the city of Leeds, would culminate in a life on the tour that saw him claim half a dozen major wins in six years.

This year marks two decades since the popular Hunter passed away from cancer, days short to his 28th birthday.

But despite the passing of a generational talent that rose above the pastime he cherished, his influence and memory on the sport and those who knew him endure as powerful today.

'The game was his life': The Formative Years

"We could not have predicted in a lifetime the boy would become a career sportsman," his mother recalls.

"Yet he just was passionate about it."

Hunter's father recounts how his son "showed no interest in anything else" except for snooker as a youth.

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

After persistently asking his dad to take him to a community venue to play on regulation tables at the age of eight, the aspiring talent made the jump from miniature games with aplomb.

His raw skill would be developed by the former world title holder Joe Johnson, from neighbouring Bradford, at a now defunct club in the north Leeds suburb of Yeadon.

Metoric Ascent: The Path to Glory

With his parents' pleas to do his homework often being ignored as the game dominated, his parents took the "gamble" of taking Hunter out of school at the fourteen years old to fully dedicate himself to forging a career in the game.

It paid off in spades. Within five years, their adolescent had won his maior professional trophy, the Welsh Open of 1998.

Considered one of snooker's toughest events to win because of the lineup featuring only the top competitors, Hunter was victorious a trio of times, in 2001, 2002 and 2004.

'A Gracious Competitor': The Man Behind the Cue

But for all his success on the table, away from the game Hunter's approachable nature never deserted him.

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

"When encountering him you'd take to him," Kristina continues. "He brought joy. 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 "funny, kind" and "never the first to depart from the party".

With his effortless appeal, handsome features and straight-talking media manner, not to mention his considerable talent, Hunter quickly became snooker's poster boy for the new millennium.

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

Courage in Crisis: Illness and Resilience

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

Multiple stories from across the sporting world speak of the man's extraordinary dedication to fulfill commitments to public appearances and promotional work, 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 competed in the World Championships that year.

When he passed away in October 2006, snooker's close-knit fraternity lost one of its best-loved members.

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

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 program was so successful that, according to reports, issues with young people in some areas plummeted.

"The aim remained for a platform to help offer a constructive activity," one coach said.

The Foundation helped lay the groundwork for a huge coaching programme, which has extended 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 senior official in the sport stated.

Forever in Memory: A Lasting Presence

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

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

"We don't mind talking about Paul," she continues. "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 highly probable notion that Hunter would have eventually won snooker's ultimate trophy is a part of the sport's folklore.

The Masters, the competition with which he is most synonymous, starts later this month. The winner will lift the Paul Hunter Trophy.

But for all his successes, two decades after his death it is Paul Hunter's character, as much his dazzling snooker ability, that will ensure he is never forgotten.