'Paul was fun': Honoring snooker's taken talent 20 years on.
All the Leeds-born talent ever wanted to do was compete on the baize.
A competitive passion, developed at the age of three with the help of a miniature snooker set on his home's central table in his Leeds home, would result in a professional career that saw him secure six major trophies in six years.
The present year marks a score of years since the beloved Hunter succumbed to cancer, just days before to his 28th birthday.
But despite the tragic departure of a phenomenal skill that went beyond the pastime he cherished, his legacy and impact on the game and those who were close to him persist as powerful today.
'He just loved it': Early Beginnings
"It was impossible to foresee in a million years Paul would become a professional snooker player," his mother states.
"Yet he just was passionate about it."
Alan Hunter remembers how his son "cared little for anything else" except for snooker as a young boy.
"His dedication was constant," he notes. "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 young Hunter made the jump from miniature games with aplomb.
His natural ability would be coached by the snooker legend Joe Johnson, from neighbouring Bradford, at a now former establishment 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 practice took priority, his parents took the "risk" of taking Hunter out of school at the age of 14 to fully concentrate on building a career in the game.
It proved a masterstroke. Within a short period, their adolescent had won his maior professional trophy, the 1998 Welsh Open.
Considered one of snooker's most difficult competitions to win because of the presence of elite players only, Hunter triumphed three times, in the early 2000s.
'A Gracious Competitor': His Enduring Personality
But for all his triumphs in the sport, away from the game Hunter's down-to-earth charisma never faded.
"He was incredibly composed did Paul," Alan says. "He connected with everybody."
"When encountering him you'd enjoy his company," Kristina states. "Paul was fun. 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 "witty, generous" and "always the last to leave the party".
With his natural likability, boyish good looks and straight-talking media manner, not to mention his immense skill, Hunter quickly became snooker's poster boy for the new millennium.
No wonder then, that he was dubbed 'A Sporting Icon'.
Courage in Crisis: A Fight Against Cancer
In the mid-2000s, a year that should have marked the peak of his powers, Hunter was found to have cancer and would later undergo cancer therapy.
Multiple anecdotes from across the sporting world speak of the man's extraordinary commitment to keep promises to public appearances and promotional work, 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 played at the World Championships that year.
When he died in October 2006, snooker's tight community lost one of its most popular brothers.
"It's awful," Kristina says. "It is a terrible thing for any mum and dad to suffer such a loss."
A Foundation for the Future: Inspiring Youth
Hunter's true contribution would be felt not in palaces and castles but in local sports centers across the UK.
The foundation he inspired, set up before his death, would provide accessible training to children all over the country.
The program was so successful that, according to reports, local youth crime rates in some areas dropped significantly.
"The idea was for a platform to help offer a constructive activity," one coach said.
The Foundation helped pave the way for a huge coaching programme, which has provided playing opportunities to children all over the world.
"He would have embraced what we've done with the sport and where it is today," a senior official in the sport stated.
Forever in Memory: A Lasting Presence
Classic footage of their son's matches via the internet help his parents stay "in touch with his memory".
"I can watch it and I can watch Paul whenever I wish," Kristina says. "It's wonderful!"
"We like to reminisce about Paul," she continues. "At first it was sad, but I'd rather somebody mention him than him not be spoken of."
Although he never won the World Championship, the common opinion that Hunter would have gone on to lift snooker's ultimate trophy is a part of the sport's folklore.
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 achievements, two decades after his death it is Paul Hunter's spirit, as much his spectacular skill with a cue, that will ensure he is always remembered.
