 He won a bronze medal in the 110 m hurdles in 1924, and finished fourth in the 400 m hurdles and 4 × 400 m relay in 1928, while failing to reach the finals on other occasions.Pettersson held two world records, for about a year each, in the 110 m (1927–1928) and 400 m hurdles (1925–1927).In 1925 he became the first recipient of the Svenska Dagbladet Gold Medal.