'Paul was fun': Remembering the sport's departed star two decades on.
Everything Paul Hunter ever wanted to do was practice the game.
A sporting bug, developed at the tender age of three with the help of a small snooker set on his home's central table in the city of Leeds, would lead to a life on the tour that saw him win six major trophies in six years.
This year marks a score of years since the adored Hunter succumbed to cancer, mere days prior to his birthday marking 28 years.
But despite the tragic departure of a generational talent that went beyond the pastime he cherished, his legacy and impact on the sport and those who followed his career endure as strong as ever.
'His passion was clear': The Formative Years
"It was impossible to foresee in a lifetime Paul would become a career sportsman," Hunter's mum states.
"But he just adored it."
His dad recounts how his son "showed no interest in anything else" other than snooker as a young boy.
"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 professional-standard tables at the age of eight, the budding player made the leap from table top snooker with aplomb.
His mercurial talent would be nurtured by the former world title holder Joe Johnson, from the adjacent city, at a now former establishment in the north Leeds suburb of Yeadon.
Quick Success: A Star is Born
With his family's urging to do his homework increasingly falling on deaf ears as the game dominated, his parents took the "risk" of taking Hunter out of school at the mid-teens to fully focus on building a career in the game.
It proved a masterstroke. Within a short period, their young son had won his first ranking title, the Welsh Open of 1998.
Considered one of snooker's toughest events to win because of the lineup featuring exclusively the best, Hunter triumphed three times, in 2001, 2002 and 2004.
'A Cheeky Charm': His Enduring Personality
But for all his success on the table, away from the game Hunter's down-to-earth charisma never left him.
"He was incredibly composed did Paul," Alan says. "He was liked by everybody."
"If you met him you'd like him," Kristina continues. "Paul was fun. He'd make you feel at ease."
Hunter's wife Lindsey, with whom he had a child, describes him as an "incredible, lively, and kind spirit" who was "funny, kind" and "always the last to leave the party".
With his effortless appeal, boyish good looks and candid way with the press, not to mention his considerable talent, Hunter quickly became snooker's poster boy for the new 21st Century.
No wonder then, that he was nicknamed 'The Beckham of the Baize'.
Facing Adversity: Illness and Resilience
In that year, a year that should have marked the peak of his powers, Hunter was told he had cancer and would later undergo cancer therapy.
Multiple stories from across the snooker circuit highlight the man's extraordinary willingness to honor obligations to exhibitions, events and press interviews, all while enduring treatment.
Despite difficult symptoms, Hunter continued to compete through the illness and received a rapturous applause at The World Championship arena when he competed in the World Championships that year.
When he succumbed in autumn 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 go through that pain."
A Lasting Impact: Giving Back
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 free snooker sessions to young people all over the country.
The scheme was so successful that, according to reports, issues with young people in some areas fell sharply.
"The goal was for a program to help provide a positive outlet," one organizer said.
The Foundation helped establish the basis for a significant coaching programme, which has extended playing opportunities to children globally.
"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
Classic footage 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 marvellous!"
"We are happy to speak about Paul," she adds. "Initially it was painful, but I'd rather somebody mention him than him not be mentioned at all."
Although he never won the World Championship, the highly probable notion that Hunter would have eventually won snooker's ultimate trophy is etched into the sport's legend.
The Masters, the competition with which he is forever linked, commences later this month. The winner will lift the memorial cup.
But for all his accomplishments, a generation after his death it is Paul Hunter's spirit, as much his spectacular skill with a cue, that will ensure he is never forgotten.
