 Petersen won the national pole vault title in 1920-21, 1923 and 1925–27 and improved the national record eight times from 3.69 m in 1919 to 4.03 m in 1925.He also held three national titles in the 4×100 m sprint relay (1919–20 and 1922) and five in team gymnastics events (between 1921 and 1927).He retired from sport shortly before the 1928 Olympics due to tuberculosis.