đź”— Share this article 'He was a joy': Reflecting on the game's departed star 20 years on. The snooker star claimed The Masters thrice during a brief yet brilliant career. Everything the Leeds-born talent ever wanted to do was play snooker. A competitive passion, sparked 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 lead to a pro playing days that saw him claim half a dozen major wins in half a dozen years. The present year marks a score of years since the beloved Hunter passed away from cancer, mere days prior to his 28th birthday. But in spite of the passing of a phenomenal skill that went beyond the sport he adored, his enduring mark on the game and those who followed his career endure as vibrant now. 'He just loved it': Early Beginnings "It was impossible to foresee in a billion years our son would become a professional snooker player," his mother recalls. "Yet he just loved it." His dad remembers how his son "cared little for anything else" except for snooker as a child. "He was relentless," he notes. "He would play every night after school." Beginning young: Hunter was acquainted with snooker from the age of three. After repeatedly pleading with his dad to take him to a local club to play on professional-standard tables at the age of eight, the young Hunter made the transition from miniature games with remarkable ease. His raw skill would be developed by the former world title holder Joe Johnson, from nearby Bradford, at a now former establishment in the Leeds district of Yeadon. Metoric Ascent: From Teenager to Champion With his family's urging to do his homework increasingly falling on deaf ears as training came first, his parents took the "chance" of taking Hunter out of school at the age of 14 to fully dedicate himself to forging a career in the game. It proved a masterstroke. Within a short period, their still-teenage son had won his initial major win, the 1998 Welsh Open. Considered one of snooker's most difficult competitions to win because of the presence of only the top competitors, Hunter was victorious three times, in the early 2000s. 'Paul was fun': A Legacy of Character 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 was liked by everybody." "Upon meeting him you'd take to him," Kristina adds. "He was enjoyable. He'd make you feel at ease." Hunter's wife Lindsey, with whom he had a daughter, describes him as an "incredible, lively, and kind spirit" who was "funny, kind" and "never the first to depart from the party". With his effortless appeal, boyish good looks and honest interview style, not to mention his prodigious ability, Hunter quickly became snooker's leading figure for the new millennium. No wonder then, that he was nicknamed 'The Beckham of the Baize'. A Brave Battle: His Final Years In that year, a year that should have signaled the zenith of his talent, Hunter was diagnosed with cancer and would later undergo aggressive treatment. Multiple accounts from across the sporting world highlight the man's extraordinary willingness to fulfill commitments to exhibitions, events and press interviews, all while going through treatment. Despite harsh reactions, Hunter kept playing through the illness and received a rapturous applause at The World Championship arena when he played at the World Championships that year. When he died in autumn 2006, snooker's close-knit fraternity lost one of its most popular brothers. "It is tragic," Kristina says. "I wouldn't wish any mum and dad to lose a child." A Foundation for the Future: Inspiring Youth Hunter's true contribution would be felt not in palaces and castles but in snooker halls and clubs across the UK. The Paul Hunter Foundation, set up before his death, would provide accessible training to youths all over the country. The scheme was so successful that, according to reports, anti-social behavior in some areas plummeted. "The goal was for a platform to help get kids off the street," one official said. The Foundation helped establish the basis for a significant coaching programme, which has extended playing opportunities to children internationally. "It would have thrilled him what we've done with the sport and where it is today," a leading figure in the sport stated. Always Remembered: A Lasting Presence Archive videos of their son's matches on YouTube help his parents stay "close to him". "I can access it and I can watch Paul anytime," Kristina says. "It's a comfort!" "We like to reminisce about Paul," she concludes. "Before it would be tears, but I'd rather somebody talk than him not be recalled." While he never won the World Championship, the common opinion that Hunter would have gone on to lift snooker's greatest prize is ingrained in the sport's history. The Masters, the competition with which he is most synonymous, commences later this month. The winner will lift the Paul Hunter Trophy. But for all his accomplishments, 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 snooker star claimed The Masters thrice during a brief yet brilliant career. Everything the Leeds-born talent ever wanted to do was play snooker. A competitive passion, sparked 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 lead to a pro playing days that saw him claim half a dozen major wins in half a dozen years. The present year marks a score of years since the beloved Hunter passed away from cancer, mere days prior to his 28th birthday. But in spite of the passing of a phenomenal skill that went beyond the sport he adored, his enduring mark on the game and those who followed his career endure as vibrant now. 'He just loved it': Early Beginnings "It was impossible to foresee in a billion years our son would become a professional snooker player," his mother recalls. "Yet he just loved it." His dad remembers how his son "cared little for anything else" except for snooker as a child. "He was relentless," he notes. "He would play every night after school." Beginning young: Hunter was acquainted with snooker from the age of three. After repeatedly pleading with his dad to take him to a local club to play on professional-standard tables at the age of eight, the young Hunter made the transition from miniature games with remarkable ease. His raw skill would be developed by the former world title holder Joe Johnson, from nearby Bradford, at a now former establishment in the Leeds district of Yeadon. Metoric Ascent: From Teenager to Champion With his family's urging to do his homework increasingly falling on deaf ears as training came first, his parents took the "chance" of taking Hunter out of school at the age of 14 to fully dedicate himself to forging a career in the game. It proved a masterstroke. Within a short period, their still-teenage son had won his initial major win, the 1998 Welsh Open. Considered one of snooker's most difficult competitions to win because of the presence of only the top competitors, Hunter was victorious three times, in the early 2000s. 'Paul was fun': A Legacy of Character 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 was liked by everybody." "Upon meeting him you'd take to him," Kristina adds. "He was enjoyable. He'd make you feel at ease." Hunter's wife Lindsey, with whom he had a daughter, describes him as an "incredible, lively, and kind spirit" who was "funny, kind" and "never the first to depart from the party". With his effortless appeal, boyish good looks and honest interview style, not to mention his prodigious ability, Hunter quickly became snooker's leading figure for the new millennium. No wonder then, that he was nicknamed 'The Beckham of the Baize'. A Brave Battle: His Final Years In that year, a year that should have signaled the zenith of his talent, Hunter was diagnosed with cancer and would later undergo aggressive treatment. Multiple accounts from across the sporting world highlight the man's extraordinary willingness to fulfill commitments to exhibitions, events and press interviews, all while going through treatment. Despite harsh reactions, Hunter kept playing through the illness and received a rapturous applause at The World Championship arena when he played at the World Championships that year. When he died in autumn 2006, snooker's close-knit fraternity lost one of its most popular brothers. "It is tragic," Kristina says. "I wouldn't wish any mum and dad to lose a child." A Foundation for the Future: Inspiring Youth Hunter's true contribution would be felt not in palaces and castles but in snooker halls and clubs across the UK. The Paul Hunter Foundation, set up before his death, would provide accessible training to youths all over the country. The scheme was so successful that, according to reports, anti-social behavior in some areas plummeted. "The goal was for a platform to help get kids off the street," one official said. The Foundation helped establish the basis for a significant coaching programme, which has extended playing opportunities to children internationally. "It would have thrilled him what we've done with the sport and where it is today," a leading figure in the sport stated. Always Remembered: A Lasting Presence Archive videos of their son's matches on YouTube help his parents stay "close to him". "I can access it and I can watch Paul anytime," Kristina says. "It's a comfort!" "We like to reminisce about Paul," she concludes. "Before it would be tears, but I'd rather somebody talk than him not be recalled." While he never won the World Championship, the common opinion that Hunter would have gone on to lift snooker's greatest prize is ingrained in the sport's history. The Masters, the competition with which he is most synonymous, commences later this month. The winner will lift the Paul Hunter Trophy. But for all his accomplishments, 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.