Crawford made an early debut on the international stage. At the age of sixteen, she competed at the 1998 World Junior Championships, finishing ninth. She had set a season's best throw of 57.03 metres in the qualifying round. The next year she won the silver medal at the inaugural World Youth Championships, for athletes aged seventeen and less. She threw 57.56 metres to win that medal, but had managed a personal best of 62.71 metres in Havana in March. One year after that, in March 2000, she improved to 65.88 metres in Las Tunas. The 2000 World Junior Championships were staged in Santiago de Chile, with Crawford winning the bronze medal. It was the second championships that included the women's hammer throw.