'He brought laughter': Remembering the sport's taken talent a score of years on.

All the Leeds-born talent ever wanted to do was practice the game.

A love for the game, caught at the age of three with the help of a miniature snooker set on his home's central table in the city of Leeds, would lead to a professional career that saw him claim six major trophies in a six-year span.

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 transcended the sport he adored, his enduring mark on the sport and those who followed his career remain as vibrant now.

'His passion was clear': A Childhood Obsession

"We could not have predicted in a million years our son would become a career sportsman," Hunter's mum recalls.

"Yet he just loved it."

Hunter's father recounts how his son "cared little for anything else" besides snooker as a young boy.

"He never stopped," he adds. "He competed 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 jump from table top snooker with remarkable ease.

His raw skill would be coached by the former world title holder Joe Johnson, from nearby Bradford, at a now defunct club in the area of Yeadon.

Rapid Rise: A Star is Born

With his mother and father's requests to do his homework increasingly falling on deaf ears as the game dominated, his parents took the "gamble" of taking Hunter out of school at the age of 14 to fully concentrate on forging a career in the game.

It paid off in spades. Within five years, their still-teenage son had won his initial major win, the 1998 Welsh Open.

Considered one of snooker's hardest tournaments to win because of the lineup featuring exclusively the best, Hunter was victorious a trio of times, in 2001, 2002 and 2004.

'Paul was fun': The Man Behind the Cue

But for all his triumphs in the sport, away from the game Hunter's humble charm 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 adds. "Paul was fun. He'd make you comfortable."

Hunter's wife Lindsey, with whom he had daughter Evie, describes him as an "wonderful, youthful, and fun personality" who was "witty, generous" and "always the last to leave the party".

With his effortless appeal, youthful appearance and candid way with the press, not to mention his prodigious ability, Hunter quickly became snooker's pin-up for the new 21st Century.

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

Courage in Crisis: Illness and Resilience

In 2005, a year that should have marked the peak of his powers, Hunter was told he had cancer and would later undergo aggressive treatment.

Multiple accounts from across the sporting world highlight the man's extraordinary dedication to fulfill commitments to charity matches, tournaments, and media duties, all while undergoing treatment.

Despite difficult symptoms, Hunter played on through the illness and received a tumultuous reception at The famous Sheffield venue when he played at 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. "No parent should experience any mum and dad to suffer such a loss."

A Foundation for the Future: The Paul Hunter Foundation

Hunter's true impact would be felt not in high society but in snooker halls and clubs across the UK.

The charity in his name, set up before his death, would provide accessible training to youths 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 platform to help provide a positive outlet," one organizer said.

The Foundation helped establish the basis for a major 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: 20 Years Later

Classic footage of their son's matches on YouTube help his parents stay "close to him".

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

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

While he never won the World Championship, the widespread belief that Hunter would have secured snooker's ultimate trophy is ingrained in the sport's legend.

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

But for all his accomplishments, 20 years after his death it is Paul Hunter's personality, as much his spectacular skill with a cue, that will ensure he is forever celebrated.