Johan Petersen

About

Johan 'Jo' Petersen is a South African-born GP doctor based in Whakatane, New Zealand, and one of the sport's most committed veteran ultra-distance adventurers. Trained at Wits University in South Africa, he moved to New Zealand where he has practised as a general practitioner while accumulating over 10,000 racing kilometres since 2004 across more than 17 countries and all seven continents, including Antarctica. His race resume spans the Atacama Desert Race, the Gobi March, and the Antarctic Marathon, and he has run the Tarawera Ultramarathon since its earliest editions, completing his ninth-plus Tarawera well into his sixties. He wins his age category in virtually every event he enters; his best outright result in the database is 2nd among men at the 2010 Tarawera Ultramarathon (10:57:48). A holder of additional diplomas in tropical medicine and aviation medicine, Petersen trains off-road after full clinical working days with minimum two-hour sessions through the hills above Whakatane — embodying the doctor-athlete blend at its most committed.

Notable Wins

• — Tarawera Ultramarathon 2010 2nd men (10:57:48)
• — multiple age-group wins across 17+ countries and 7 continents

Race History