It&rsquo;s not just the gold medallists who gain valuable experience from competing at the IAAF World U20 Championships. Many athletes who exit the championships in the heats or qualifying rounds go on to become stars of the sport in their senior years.
World indoor shot put champion Anita M&aacute;rton of Hungary takes a trip down memory lane to recall the memories and significance of competing at both the 2006 and 2008 World U20 Championships.
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<h3>Background</h3>
Born and raised in Hungary &ndash; a country boasting a rich hammer tradition &ndash; it is perhaps little surprise that Anita M&aacute;rton once flirted with the event where the Magyars have enjoyed so much international success.
The late, great Hungarian coaching guru P&aacute;l N&eacute;meth earmarked M&aacute;rton as a future Olympic hammer champion, yet the girl from the city of B&eacute;k&eacute;scsaba in Southeast Hungary was not fond of the hammer and quickly ditched the event to focus on shot and discus. It proved a wise decision.
Aged 16, she won selection for her two favoured events at the 2005 World U18 Championships in Marrakesh. She performed admirably in the shot, setting a PB of 12.79m for 11th but was more than seven metres shy of her best in the discus and failed to advance to the final.
Her performances stepped up a level in 2006, as she hurled the shot out to a national U18 record of 15.57m and the discus to an impressive PB of 52.36m to win selection for the IAAF World U20 Championships in Beijing.
However, an untimely stomach bug torpedoed her ambitions in the Chinese capital.
<h3>Competition memories</h3>
&ldquo;The illness made me quite sick in Beijing,&rdquo; she recalls. &ldquo;On top of this, I was very nervous ahead of the shot qualification and (with a best of 14.87m for 15th in qualification) I did not make the final. I was sad and angry to miss out because I wanted a PB.&rdquo;
Suffering the lingering effects of the bug, she also frustratingly fell short of expectations in the discus. Unlike the shot, she did advance to the final with 49.65m, but depleted of her energy she struggled to 12th, hurling a best effort of 46.76m.
Small in stature compared to many of her rivals, M&aacute;rton made some crucial decisions following her World U20 Championships debut.
&ldquo;I worked hard on my technique and became stronger because I realised my weakness was by body,&rdquo; she says. &ldquo;It was around this time we (M&aacute;rton and her coach) decided to change from the glide to the rotational technique. This allowed me to better use my speed, which is one of my strengths.&rdquo;
In 2007 she finished a handy sixth and seventh in the discus and shot, respectively, at the European Junior Championships in Hengelo before emerging in even better form in 2008.
That season the powerful Hungarian fired the shot and discus out to national U20 records of 16.90m and 55.07m and she approached the 2008 World U20 Championship in Bydgoszcz, Poland, with a high level of expectation.
&ldquo;I wanted to earn a shot medal,&rdquo; she says, &ldquo;but once again it did not happen.&rdquo;
Two years earlier at the previous edition of the World U20 Championships, illness compromised her chances. In Poland, she simply succumbed to nerves. She advanced to the shot final but when it counted could only produce a modest best of 15.88m &ndash; more than a metre down on her PB &ndash; for seventh.
She performed a little better in the discus, hurling the 1kg implement out to 51.16m for sixth but once again the World U20 Championships proved a competition of &lsquo;what ifs&rsquo; for the teenager.
<h3>Lessons learned</h3>
&ldquo;What Bydgoszcz taught me was that I didn&rsquo;t truly believe in myself and maybe this was the biggest problem in my early career,&rdquo; she says.
It took some time for M&aacute;rton to address her mental fragility, but following a disappointing performance at the London 2012 Olympic Games, where she finished 21st in qualification with a modest best of 17.48m, she sought the help of a sports psychologist. 
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Anita Marton in the shot put at the London 2012 Olympic Games</div>
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&ldquo;I remember in London I couldn&rsquo;t concentrate in the competition because of the 80,000 people in the stadium,&rdquo; she explains. &ldquo;After the Olympic Games I wanted to change my approach, so I started seeing a sports psychologist.
&ldquo;Under him, I learned some meditative techniques and how to relax between throws,&rdquo; she says. &ldquo;He also emphasised how even if I underperformed that my family still loves me and this helped relieve some of the pressure.&rdquo;
Since then, her ability to thrive on the biggest stage has improved markedly and she has developed into one of the world&rsquo;s finest shot put specialists.
From 2014 onwards, she has set personal bests at seven of her nine major championship competitions and picked up a slew of medals; including Olympic bronze, world silver, world indoor gold and silver medals, European outdoor silver and two European indoor crowns. 
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Anita Marton in the shot put at the IAAF World Indoor Championships Birmingham 2018</div>
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Yet, without question, her twin World U20 Championships experiences formed a crucial stepping stone for her successful senior career.
&ldquo;Of course they (World U20 Championships) were important experiences and I learned so much,&rdquo; explains the 29-year-old.
&ldquo;It taught me about life in the call room and what I needed to do. It also taught me what I needed to do between two throws during a qualification session with many athletes. &ldquo;
For the scores of teenage athletes set to compete at the IAAF World U20 Championships Tampere 2018, M&aacute;rton has a simple message.
&ldquo;Trust yourself but try not to worry and stress too much about the competition,&rdquo; she says. &ldquo;If you can&rsquo;t deliver your dreams as an under-20 athlete, another chance will come as a senior athlete.&rdquo;
Few athletes know this better than Anita M&aacute;rton.
Steve Landells for the IAAF

It’s not just the gold medallists who gain valuable experience from competing at the IAAF World U20 Championships. Many athletes who exit the championships in the heats or qualifying rounds go on to become stars of the sport in their senior years.

Teen trials to senior success – Anita Márton

Tianna Bartoletta managed to complete the long jump-100m double at this year's Seiko Golden Grand Prix in Kawasaki, but the American could hardly have cut it closer in either event at the IAAF World Challenge meeting on Sunday (10).Bartoletta, who has put her career back on track in an attempt to regain the world long jump title she won as a teenager in 2005, had lost to Klishina by 10cm at last year's meeting but from the start of&nbsp; competition, it was apparent the margin would be much less this time.Bartoletta opened with a jump of 6.65m, and Klishina followed with 6.66m. The American then sailed out to 6.69m, which Klishina nearly matched but landed at 6.68m. Neither could improve the rest of the way, and Bartoletta, with the 100m ahead of her, passed on her final two attempts but said she was ready to jump if Klishina overtook her, which she half-expected.&nbsp; <div class="quote">"I don't underestimate anybody in the long jump field ever," commented Bartoletta. "I've done it a few times myself, when it seems like I was out of it. I won indoor worlds on my last jump and Helsinki on my fifth jump, so I never assume it's in the bag. "</div>Both jumpers cited fatigue as the small field of six left little time between attempts."Today was hard because it was so fast and with very small break between attempts," said Klishina, whose best jump was on her fourth attempt but ruled a close foul. "This is my first competition and I was confused a little bit."In the 100m, which Bartoletta won last year, she did not join the leaders until the final 20 metres, then managed to edge her opponents in 11.26."I didn't have a very good anything," she said. "I am happy to have won the race, but it wasn't a technically sound race. "I ran around the same time at this meet last year, and went on to run 10.92 at my nationals. So I'm learning not to get too caught up in where your start, because everybody only remembers how you finish."In the tight finish, Ivory Coast&rsquo;s Marie-Josee Ta Lou was given the same time as Bartoletta but had to settle for second, a few thousandths in arrears while Jamaica&rsquo;s Simone Facey was third in 11.27. The latter later returned to the track to win the women's 200 in 22.65, 0.20 ahead of USA&rsquo;s Tiffany Townsend.Bogdan Bondarenko repeated his victory from last year in the men's high jump, but was unable to beat his winning mark of 2.40m at last year's meeting &ndash; he missed in three attempts at 2.41 &ndash; but the Ukrainian star was far from unhappy."I feel good. I had good trip here. I wanted to jump better today, but I think 2.37 is not a bad result."He cleared both 2.20m and 2.31m on his first attempts, then needed two jumps to clear 2.37m; a marked contrast from 2014, when he needed three attempts to make three consecutive heights for the first time in his career."I felt better technically than last year, so I could make the heights on the first attempt," Bondarenko said. "In this way, I can save energy for the upcoming season."China's Zhang Guowei finished second and Japan's Takashi Eto third, with both clearing 2.28.The meet at refurbished Todoroki Stadium also marked the opening event of the women's IAAF Hammer Throw Challenge, with Slovakia's Martina Hrasnova capturing the title in dramatic fashion with a final throw of 74.27m.Hrasnova was in third place going into the final round when she uncorked the leading throw in the world this season. China's Wang Zheng threw 73.68m on her last attempt to edge Canada's Sultana Frizell by two centimetres for second place.In the women's 100m hurdles, London 2012 Olympic Games champion Sally Pearson bolted out of the blocks and was never challenged, winning in 12.66, although a loss of pace late in the race cost her a chance to regain the meeting record she set in 2007 but lost last year when Brianna Rollins clocked 12.62."It was a good race," said Pearson, who was competing for the first time since winning at the Australian championships six weeks ago. "I think if I had another race straight after, it would have been better.<div class="quote">"I'm really glad that Doha is only five days away from now so I can really focus on that and pick up my speed toward the end. I think I lacked a little bit there. I think that's one thing that I can improve on," added Pearson.</div>"I'm really glad that Doha is only five days away from now so I can really focus on that and pick up my speed toward the end. I think I lacked a little bit there. I think that's one thing that I can improve on," added Pearson.USA&rsquo;s Queen Harrison finished second in 12.75.In other highlights, two other meeting records fell, while the host nation came away with two impressive victories and a new national record.Ukraine's Anna Mishchenko passed Ethiopia's world junior silver medalist Gudaf Tsegay coming off the final turn and won the women's 1500m in 4:02.47, topping the previous record of 4.03.51 set by Australia's Sarah Jamieson in 2006. Tsegay also finished under the old mark in second with 4:03.09.Hungary's Anita Marton won the women's shot put with a throw of 18.94, bettering Valerie Adams' 2003 meeting record by one centimetre.While Japan was missing teen sprint star Yoshihide Kiryu, another member of the squad that won a bronze medal in the men's 4x100 at the IAAF World Relays helped pick up the slack.Kenji Fujimitsu, a past national champion who has been plagued by injuries, burst back onto the scene by winning the 200m in 20.33, and knocked 0.05 off his personal best set in 2010.Japan went one-two in the men's pole vault, with Seito Yamamoto, who finished sixth at the World Championships, securing the win on misses over Hiroki Ogita after both cleared 5.50m. In the women's javelin, Yuki Ebihara added nearly a metre to her Japanese record with a toss of 63.80m, although that was only good enough for fourth place.Canada's Elizabeth Gleadle threw a national record of 64.83m to edge USA&rsquo;s Brittany Borman by eight centimetres, and Latvia's Madara Palameika was third at 64.07."I was expecting a personal best this season," Gleadle said. "I wasn't expecting such a great series and a personal best so soon."The men&rsquo;s javelin also saw some good distances with Czech Republic's Jakub Vadlejch winning throw of 85.13m adding 68cm to his personal best.Other men's winners were: Cuba's Alexis Copello in the triple jump with a wind-aided 17.24m; Colombia's Rafith Rodriguez in the 800m, 1:45:84; Estonia's Rasmus Magi in the 400m hurdles, 49.48; and Kenya's Bernard Nganga in the 3000m steeplechase in 8:23.77. The remaining women's titles went to Australian Lauren Wells in the 400m hurdles with 56.19 and Nigerian Regina George in the 400m with 51.30.Ken Marantz for the IAAF

Tianna Bartoletta managed to complete the long jump-100m double at this year's Seiko Golden Grand Prix in Kawasaki, but the American could hardly have cut it closer in either event at the IAAF World Challenge meeting on Sunday (10).

Teen trials to senior success – Anita Márton

Bartoletta and Bondarenko provide the highlights in Kawasaki