'Paul was fun': Remembering the sport's lost great 20 years on.

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

A competitive passion, sparked 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 culminate in a professional career that saw him secure half a dozen major wins in a six-year span.

The present year marks two decades since the adored Hunter died from cancer, mere days prior to his twenty-eighth birthday.

But notwithstanding the loss of a once-in-a-generation player that went beyond the game he loved, his legacy and impact on the sport and those who were close to him remain as vibrant now.

'His passion was clear': Early Beginnings

"It was impossible to foresee in a billion years our son would become a pro on the circuit," Hunter's mum states.

"However he just loved it."

Alan Hunter recounts how his son "showed no interest in anything else" besides snooker as a child.

"His dedication was constant," he says. "He competed every night after school."

After persistently asking his dad to take him to a nearby hall to play on full-size tables at the age of eight, the aspiring talent made the transition from home play with remarkable ease.

His mercurial talent would be coached by the snooker legend 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 parents' pleas to do his homework regularly going unheeded as training came first, his parents took the "chance" of taking Hunter out of school at the fourteen years old to fully dedicate himself to building a career in the game.

It was a resounding success. Within a short period, their adolescent had won his initial major win, the 1998 Welsh Open.

Considered one of snooker's toughest events to win because of the involvement of exclusively the best, Hunter triumphed on three occasions, in 2001, 2002 and 2004.

'Paul was fun': A Legacy of Character

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

"He had a great temperament did Paul," Alan says. "He was liked by everybody."

"Upon meeting him you'd take to him," Kristina states. "He was enjoyable. He'd make you feel at ease."

Hunter's partner Lindsey, with whom he had daughter Evie, describes him as an "amazing, young cheeky beautiful soul" who was "humorous, caring" and "typically the final guest at the party".

With his easy charm, boyish good looks and straight-talking media manner, not to mention his considerable talent, Hunter quickly became snooker's poster boy for the new 21st Century.

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

Facing Adversity: His Final Years

In 2005, a year that should have signaled the peak of his powers, Hunter was diagnosed with cancer and would later undergo chemotherapy.

Multiple accounts from across the sporting world speak of the man's extraordinary commitment to keep promises 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 World Championship arena when he turned out for the World Championships that year.

When he succumbed in the mid-2000s, snooker's close-knit fraternity lost one of its most popular brothers.

"It is tragic," Kristina says. "No parent should experience any mum and dad to lose a child."

A Foundation for the Future: Giving Back

Hunter's true legacy would be felt not in royal circles but in local sports centers across the UK.

The foundation he inspired, 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, local youth crime rates in some areas dropped significantly.

"The goal was for a scheme to help offer a constructive activity," one coach said.

The Foundation helped establish the basis for a significant coaching programme, which has provided 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: 20 Years Later

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

"I can access it and I can watch Paul at any moment," Kristina says. "It's wonderful!"

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

Even though he never won the World Championship, the common opinion that Hunter would have secured snooker's top honor is a part of the sport's legend.

The Masters, the competition with which he is forever linked, commences later this month. The winner will lift the trophy named in his honor.

But for all his achievements, a generation after his death it is Paul Hunter's spirit, as much his brilliant talent on the table, that will ensure he is always remembered.