'He brought laughter': Honoring the game's taken talent a score of years on.

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

A love for the game, caught at the age of three with the help of a tiny snooker set on his parents' coffee table in his Leeds home, would result in a life on the tour that saw him secure six significant titles in a six-year span.

Now marks a score of years since the popular Hunter died from cancer, mere days prior to his 28th birthday.

But despite the passing of a phenomenal skill that went beyond the pastime he cherished, his influence and memory on the sport and those who followed his career endure as vibrant now.

'The game was his life': The Formative Years

"It was impossible to foresee in a billion years the boy would become a career sportsman," Kristina Hunter says.

"But he just adored it."

His dad remembers how his son "showed no interest in anything else" other than snooker as a child.

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

After repeatedly pleading with his dad to take him to a community venue to play on regulation tables at the age of eight, the budding player made the transition from miniature games with great skill.

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

Quick Success: From Teenager to Champion

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

It proved a masterstroke. Within five years, their young son had won his first ranking title, the 1998 Welsh Open.

Considered one of snooker's most difficult competitions to win because of the involvement of exclusively the best, Hunter won a trio of times, in 2001, 2002 and 2004.

'A Cheeky Charm': His Enduring Personality

But for all his triumphs in the sport, away from the game Hunter's approachable nature never faded.

"His demeanor was excellent did Paul," Alan says. "He got on with everybody."

"When encountering him you'd take to him," Kristina continues. "He brought joy. He'd make you feel at ease."

Hunter's widow Lindsey, with whom he had a child, describes him as an "amazing, young cheeky beautiful soul" who was "humorous, caring" and "always the last to leave the party".

With his natural likability, handsome features and candid way with the press, not to mention his immense skill, Hunter quickly became snooker's pin-up for the new millennium.

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

Facing Adversity: Illness and Resilience

In 2005, a year that should have been the height of his career, Hunter was diagnosed with cancer and would later undergo cancer therapy.

Multiple stories from across the professional tour attest to the man's extraordinary willingness to keep promises to exhibitions, events and press interviews, all while enduring treatment.

Despite difficult symptoms, Hunter continued to compete through the illness and received a tumultuous reception at The famous Sheffield venue when he turned out for the World Championships that year.

When he passed away in the mid-2000s, snooker's tight community lost one of its most popular brothers.

"The pain is immense," Kristina says. "No parent should experience any mum and dad to suffer such a loss."

An Enduring Legacy: Inspiring Youth

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

The Paul Hunter Foundation, set up before his death, would provide no-cost coaching to youths all over the country.

The program was so successful that, according to reports, local youth crime rates in some areas fell sharply.

"The idea was for a platform to help get kids off the street," one official said.

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

Never Forgotten: A Lasting Presence

Historic matches of their son's matches via the internet help his parents stay "in touch with his memory".

"I can access it and I can watch Paul anytime," Kristina says. "It's a comfort!"

"We like to reminisce about Paul," she adds. "At first it was sad, but I'd rather somebody remember him than him not be mentioned at all."

Although 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 most associated, starts later this month. The winner will lift the memorial cup.

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 forever celebrated.