'He brought laughter': Remembering snooker's departed star two decades on.
All the young snooker player ever wanted to do was play snooker.
A love for the game, caught at the age of three with the help of a miniature snooker set on his family's living room table in his Leeds home, would result in a life on the tour that saw him claim six major trophies in six years.
Now marks a score of years since the adored Hunter succumbed to cancer, mere days prior to his birthday marking 28 years.
But despite the loss of a phenomenal skill that went beyond the pastime he cherished, his legacy and impact on the sport and those who followed his career persist as vibrant now.
'He just loved it': Early Beginnings
"It was impossible to foresee in a billion years the boy would become a career sportsman," Hunter's mum says.
"However he just loved it."
Alan Hunter remembers how his son "showed no interest in anything else" other than snooker as a child.
"He never stopped," he notes. "He would play every night after school."
After successfully badgering his dad to take him to a local club to play on full-size tables at the age of eight, the young Hunter made the leap from table top snooker with aplomb.
His natural ability would be developed by the snooker legend Joe Johnson, from the adjacent city, at a now closed venue in the north Leeds suburb of Yeadon.
Metoric Ascent: A Star is Born
With his mother and father's requests to do his homework often being ignored as training came first, his parents took the "gamble" of taking Hunter out of school at the fourteen years old to fully focus on building a career in the game.
It was a resounding success. Within five years, their adolescent had won his first ranking title, the 1998 Welsh Open.
Considered one of snooker's hardest tournaments to win because of the lineup featuring only the top competitors, Hunter triumphed on three occasions, in 2001, 2002 and 2004.
'A Gracious Competitor': His Enduring Personality
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 connected with everybody."
"Upon meeting him you'd enjoy his company," Kristina continues. "He brought joy. He'd make you relaxed."
Hunter's partner Lindsey, with whom he had a daughter, describes him as an "amazing, young cheeky beautiful soul" who was "humorous, caring" and "never the first to depart from the party".
With his easy charm, handsome features and honest interview style, not to mention his prodigious ability, Hunter quickly became snooker's pin-up for the new millennium.
No wonder then, that he was nicknamed 'The Beckham of the Baize'.
A Brave Battle: A Fight Against Cancer
In the mid-2000s, a year that should have marked the zenith of his talent, Hunter was diagnosed with cancer and would later undergo cancer therapy.
Multiple accounts from across the sporting world attest to the man's extraordinary willingness to fulfill commitments to public appearances and promotional work, all while undergoing treatment.
Despite harsh reactions, Hunter continued to compete through the illness and received a tumultuous reception at The Crucible Theatre when he turned out for the World Championships that year.
When he died in autumn 2006, snooker's close-knit fraternity lost one of its best-loved members.
"It is tragic," Kristina says. "I wouldn't wish any mum and dad to suffer such a loss."
A Foundation for the Future: The Paul Hunter Foundation
Hunter's true legacy would be felt not in royal circles but in snooker halls and clubs across the UK.
The Paul Hunter Foundation, set up before his death, would provide accessible training to young people all over the country.
The initiative was so successful that, according to reports, anti-social behavior in some areas fell sharply.
"The aim remained for a program to help get kids off the street," one official said.
The Foundation helped lay the groundwork for a major coaching programme, which has extended playing opportunities to children all over the world.
"It would have thrilled him 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 bring it up and I can watch Paul whenever I wish," Kristina says. "It's a comfort!"
"We don't mind talking about Paul," she concludes. "Initially it was painful, but I'd rather somebody mention him than him not be spoken of."
Although he never won the World Championship, the widespread belief that Hunter would have eventually won snooker's greatest prize is etched into the sport's legend.
The Masters, the competition with which he is forever linked, starts later this month. The winner will lift the memorial cup.
But for all his accomplishments, two decades after his death it is Paul Hunter's personality, as much his dazzling snooker ability, that will ensure he is forever celebrated.
