🔗 Share this article 'He brought laughter': Honoring the game's taken talent 20 years on. The snooker star claimed The Masters thrice during a short but glittering career. Everything the young snooker player always wished to do was compete on the baize. A sporting bug, sparked at the very young age of three with the help of a miniature snooker set on his home's central table in Leeds, would result in a life on the tour that saw him secure half a dozen major wins in a six-year span. This year marks a score of years since the adored Hunter died from cancer, mere days prior to his 28th birthday. But despite the loss of a once-in-a-generation player that rose above the pastime he cherished, his influence and memory on the game and those who were close to him persist as vibrant now. 'He just loved it': The Formative Years "It was impossible to foresee in a lifetime the boy would become a professional snooker player," his mother says. "However he just was passionate about it." Alan Hunter recounts how his son "cared little for anything else" except for snooker as a child. "He was relentless," he adds. "He would play every night after school." Early starter: Hunter was familiar with snooker from the age of three. After repeatedly pleading with his dad to take him to a community venue to play on full-size tables at the age of eight, the budding player made the jump from table top snooker with great skill. His natural ability would be developed by the 1986 World Champion Joe Johnson, from neighbouring Bradford, at a now former establishment in the area of Yeadon. Quick Success: From Teenager to Champion With his family's urging to do his homework regularly going unheeded as training came first, his parents took the "gamble" of taking Hunter out of school at the age of 14 to fully focus on forging a career in the game. It proved a masterstroke. Within a short period, their adolescent had won his maior professional trophy, the Welsh Open of 1998. Considered one of snooker's toughest events to win because of the lineup featuring only the top competitors, Hunter was victorious on three occasions, in the early 2000s. 'Paul was fun': A Legacy of Character But for all his success on the table, away from the game Hunter's humble charm never faded. "His demeanor was excellent did Paul," Alan says. "He got on with everybody." "If you met him you'd enjoy his company," Kristina adds. "He was enjoyable. He'd make you comfortable." Hunter's partner Lindsey, with whom he had daughter Evie, describes him as an "incredible, lively, and kind spirit" who was "humorous, caring" and "always the last to leave the party". With his natural likability, youthful appearance and candid way with the press, not to mention his immense skill, Hunter quickly became snooker's poster boy for the modern era. No wonder then, that he was nicknamed 'The Snooker World's Beckham'. A Brave Battle: His Final Years In that year, a year that should have been the height of his career, Hunter was found to have cancer and would later undergo aggressive treatment. Multiple stories from across the professional tour highlight the man's extraordinary willingness to honor obligations 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 Crucible Theatre when he competed in the World Championships that year. When he died in autumn 2006, snooker's close-knit fraternity lost one of its cherished personalities. "It's awful," Kristina says. "It is a terrible thing for any mum and dad to go through that pain." A Lasting Impact: Inspiring Youth Hunter's true contribution would be felt not in palaces and castles but in snooker halls and clubs across the UK. The charity in his name, set up before his death, would provide accessible training to young people all over the country. The program was so successful that, according to reports, local youth crime rates in some areas plummeted. "The idea 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 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. Never Forgotten: A Lasting Presence Historic matches of their son's matches on YouTube help his parents stay "in touch with his memory". "I can watch it and I can watch Paul anytime," Kristina says. "It's marvellous!" "We like to reminisce about Paul," she continues. "Before it would be tears, but I'd rather somebody talk than him not be recalled." While he never won the World Championship, the highly probable notion that Hunter would have eventually won snooker's ultimate trophy is ingrained in the sport's folklore. The Masters, the competition with which he is most associated, begins later this month. The winner will lift the trophy named in his honor. But for all his achievements, 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 short but glittering career. Everything the young snooker player always wished to do was compete on the baize. A sporting bug, sparked at the very young age of three with the help of a miniature snooker set on his home's central table in Leeds, would result in a life on the tour that saw him secure half a dozen major wins in a six-year span. This year marks a score of years since the adored Hunter died from cancer, mere days prior to his 28th birthday. But despite the loss of a once-in-a-generation player that rose above the pastime he cherished, his influence and memory on the game and those who were close to him persist as vibrant now. 'He just loved it': The Formative Years "It was impossible to foresee in a lifetime the boy would become a professional snooker player," his mother says. "However he just was passionate about it." Alan Hunter recounts how his son "cared little for anything else" except for snooker as a child. "He was relentless," he adds. "He would play every night after school." Early starter: Hunter was familiar with snooker from the age of three. After repeatedly pleading with his dad to take him to a community venue to play on full-size tables at the age of eight, the budding player made the jump from table top snooker with great skill. His natural ability would be developed by the 1986 World Champion Joe Johnson, from neighbouring Bradford, at a now former establishment in the area of Yeadon. Quick Success: From Teenager to Champion With his family's urging to do his homework regularly going unheeded as training came first, his parents took the "gamble" of taking Hunter out of school at the age of 14 to fully focus on forging a career in the game. It proved a masterstroke. Within a short period, their adolescent had won his maior professional trophy, the Welsh Open of 1998. Considered one of snooker's toughest events to win because of the lineup featuring only the top competitors, Hunter was victorious on three occasions, in the early 2000s. 'Paul was fun': A Legacy of Character But for all his success on the table, away from the game Hunter's humble charm never faded. "His demeanor was excellent did Paul," Alan says. "He got on with everybody." "If you met him you'd enjoy his company," Kristina adds. "He was enjoyable. He'd make you comfortable." Hunter's partner Lindsey, with whom he had daughter Evie, describes him as an "incredible, lively, and kind spirit" who was "humorous, caring" and "always the last to leave the party". With his natural likability, youthful appearance and candid way with the press, not to mention his immense skill, Hunter quickly became snooker's poster boy for the modern era. No wonder then, that he was nicknamed 'The Snooker World's Beckham'. A Brave Battle: His Final Years In that year, a year that should have been the height of his career, Hunter was found to have cancer and would later undergo aggressive treatment. Multiple stories from across the professional tour highlight the man's extraordinary willingness to honor obligations 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 Crucible Theatre when he competed in the World Championships that year. When he died in autumn 2006, snooker's close-knit fraternity lost one of its cherished personalities. "It's awful," Kristina says. "It is a terrible thing for any mum and dad to go through that pain." A Lasting Impact: Inspiring Youth Hunter's true contribution would be felt not in palaces and castles but in snooker halls and clubs across the UK. The charity in his name, set up before his death, would provide accessible training to young people all over the country. The program was so successful that, according to reports, local youth crime rates in some areas plummeted. "The idea 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 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. Never Forgotten: A Lasting Presence Historic matches of their son's matches on YouTube help his parents stay "in touch with his memory". "I can watch it and I can watch Paul anytime," Kristina says. "It's marvellous!" "We like to reminisce about Paul," she continues. "Before it would be tears, but I'd rather somebody talk than him not be recalled." While he never won the World Championship, the highly probable notion that Hunter would have eventually won snooker's ultimate trophy is ingrained in the sport's folklore. The Masters, the competition with which he is most associated, begins later this month. The winner will lift the trophy named in his honor. But for all his achievements, 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.