🔗 Share this article 'He brought laughter': Honoring snooker's taken talent 20 years on. The talented player secured The Masters thrice during a brief yet brilliant career. All the young snooker player always wished to do was play snooker. A competitive passion, developed at the tender age of three with the help of a tiny snooker set on his home's central table in Leeds, would culminate in a pro playing days that saw him secure half a dozen major wins in six years. This year marks 20 years since the adored Hunter succumbed to cancer, mere days prior to his 28th birthday. But notwithstanding the passing of a once-in-a-generation player that went beyond the sport he adored, his influence and memory on the game and those who followed his career endure 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 says. "However he just was passionate about it." Hunter's father recounts how his son "showed no interest in anything else" other than snooker as a youth. "He was relentless," he adds. "He would play every night after school." A prodigy: Hunter was introduced to snooker from the toddler years. After persistently asking his dad to take him to a nearby hall to play on professional-standard tables at the age of eight, the aspiring talent made the jump from table top snooker with great skill. His natural ability would be nurtured by the former world title holder Joe Johnson, from the adjacent city, at a now closed venue in the area of Yeadon. Metoric Ascent: A Star is Born With his family's urging to do his homework often being ignored as the game dominated, his parents took the "chance" of taking Hunter out of school at the mid-teens to fully focus on building a career in the game. It was a resounding success. Within five years, their adolescent had won his maior professional trophy, the late-nineties Welsh championship. Considered one of snooker's most difficult competitions to win because of the lineup featuring elite players only, Hunter was victorious three times, in consecutive years. 'A Gracious Competitor': 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." "Upon meeting him you'd take to him," Kristina continues. "He brought joy. He'd make you relaxed." Hunter's partner Lindsey, with whom he had a daughter, describes him as an "incredible, lively, and kind spirit" who was "humorous, caring" and "never the first to depart from the party". With his natural likability, handsome features and candid way with the press, not to mention his prodigious ability, Hunter quickly became snooker's poster boy for the new millennium. No wonder then, that he was christened 'A Sporting Icon'. Courage in Crisis: Illness and Resilience In that year, a year that should have signaled the peak of his powers, Hunter was diagnosed with cancer and would later undergo chemotherapy. Multiple stories from across the sporting world highlight the man's extraordinary dedication to fulfill commitments to public appearances and promotional work, all while undergoing treatment. Despite difficult symptoms, Hunter continued to compete through the illness and received a tumultuous reception at The famous Sheffield venue when he competed in the World Championships that year. When he passed away in the mid-2000s, snooker's family-like circuit lost one of its most popular brothers. "It's awful," Kristina says. "No parent should experience any mum and dad to lose a child." A Foundation for the Future: Inspiring Youth Hunter's true contribution 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 free snooker sessions to youths all over the country. The program was so successful that, according to reports, issues with young people in some areas dropped significantly. "The goal was for a program to help get kids off the street," one coach said. The Foundation helped lay the groundwork for a significant coaching programme, which has opened up playing opportunities to children internationally. "He would have embraced what we've done with the sport and where it is today," a chairman in the sport stated. Forever in Memory: 20 Years Later Classic footage of their son's matches online help his parents stay "close to him". "I can watch it and I can watch Paul whenever I wish," Kristina says. "It's wonderful!" "We like to reminisce about Paul," she adds. "Initially it was painful, but I'd rather somebody talk than him not be mentioned at all." Although he never won the World Championship, the highly probable notion that Hunter would have gone on to lift snooker's top honor is ingrained in the sport's folklore. The Masters, the competition with which he is most synonymous, begins 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 personality, as much his brilliant talent on the table, that will ensure he is forever celebrated.
The talented player secured The Masters thrice during a brief yet brilliant career. All the young snooker player always wished to do was play snooker. A competitive passion, developed at the tender age of three with the help of a tiny snooker set on his home's central table in Leeds, would culminate in a pro playing days that saw him secure half a dozen major wins in six years. This year marks 20 years since the adored Hunter succumbed to cancer, mere days prior to his 28th birthday. But notwithstanding the passing of a once-in-a-generation player that went beyond the sport he adored, his influence and memory on the game and those who followed his career endure 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 says. "However he just was passionate about it." Hunter's father recounts how his son "showed no interest in anything else" other than snooker as a youth. "He was relentless," he adds. "He would play every night after school." A prodigy: Hunter was introduced to snooker from the toddler years. After persistently asking his dad to take him to a nearby hall to play on professional-standard tables at the age of eight, the aspiring talent made the jump from table top snooker with great skill. His natural ability would be nurtured by the former world title holder Joe Johnson, from the adjacent city, at a now closed venue in the area of Yeadon. Metoric Ascent: A Star is Born With his family's urging to do his homework often being ignored as the game dominated, his parents took the "chance" of taking Hunter out of school at the mid-teens to fully focus on building a career in the game. It was a resounding success. Within five years, their adolescent had won his maior professional trophy, the late-nineties Welsh championship. Considered one of snooker's most difficult competitions to win because of the lineup featuring elite players only, Hunter was victorious three times, in consecutive years. 'A Gracious Competitor': 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." "Upon meeting him you'd take to him," Kristina continues. "He brought joy. He'd make you relaxed." Hunter's partner Lindsey, with whom he had a daughter, describes him as an "incredible, lively, and kind spirit" who was "humorous, caring" and "never the first to depart from the party". With his natural likability, handsome features and candid way with the press, not to mention his prodigious ability, Hunter quickly became snooker's poster boy for the new millennium. No wonder then, that he was christened 'A Sporting Icon'. Courage in Crisis: Illness and Resilience In that year, a year that should have signaled the peak of his powers, Hunter was diagnosed with cancer and would later undergo chemotherapy. Multiple stories from across the sporting world highlight the man's extraordinary dedication to fulfill commitments to public appearances and promotional work, all while undergoing treatment. Despite difficult symptoms, Hunter continued to compete through the illness and received a tumultuous reception at The famous Sheffield venue when he competed in the World Championships that year. When he passed away in the mid-2000s, snooker's family-like circuit lost one of its most popular brothers. "It's awful," Kristina says. "No parent should experience any mum and dad to lose a child." A Foundation for the Future: Inspiring Youth Hunter's true contribution 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 free snooker sessions to youths all over the country. The program was so successful that, according to reports, issues with young people in some areas dropped significantly. "The goal was for a program to help get kids off the street," one coach said. The Foundation helped lay the groundwork for a significant coaching programme, which has opened up playing opportunities to children internationally. "He would have embraced what we've done with the sport and where it is today," a chairman in the sport stated. Forever in Memory: 20 Years Later Classic footage of their son's matches online help his parents stay "close to him". "I can watch it and I can watch Paul whenever I wish," Kristina says. "It's wonderful!" "We like to reminisce about Paul," she adds. "Initially it was painful, but I'd rather somebody talk than him not be mentioned at all." Although he never won the World Championship, the highly probable notion that Hunter would have gone on to lift snooker's top honor is ingrained in the sport's folklore. The Masters, the competition with which he is most synonymous, begins 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 personality, as much his brilliant talent on the table, that will ensure he is forever celebrated.