LIU Post’s Johanna Pettersson, Not Ready To Retire

Photo Courtesy: LIU Post Pioneers

By Seren Jones, Swimming World College Intern

It was the 2015 Metropolitan Swimming Conference Championships. The event was the 100 yard backstroke, a race renowned to be tight between three members of the LIU Post women’s swim team. When I touched the wall, I immediately looked up at the scoreboard. In the lane next to me, my rival and teammate hit the pad in a time of 54.73. A new conference record placing her among the top ten in the nation.

“Oh my God, Jo-Jo!” I exclaimed, as I leaned over the lane line to congratulate the girl who stole my conference title.

Her smile only lasted a brief moment as she quickly dismissed her success to refocus.

“I have to get ready for the relay,” she said. Johanna Eva Pettersson always wants more.

Despite qualifying for the NCAA Championships her freshman year, Pettersson was dissatisfied with her swims at the meet, LIU Post swimming head coach Maureen Travers recalled.

“After her swims she was angry with her performance in the 100 backstroke, and determined right then that she would be in the finals the next year,” Travers said.

The following year, she was a finalist.

Photo Courtesy: Kyle Staggs

Unfinished Business

Pettersson is now a senior and has had an abundance of success while swimming at LIU Post. She is an All-American, a Scholar All-American, and an NCAA champion who has completed her NCAA eligibility. However, unlike the majority of senior swimmers who retire from the sport, Pettersson is not ready to hang up her suit.

Despite underperforming at this year’s NCAA Division II Swimming Championships, Pettersson said “I can’t see myself not swimming. I still have goals I want to achieve. I want to do something more.”

To that end, she has decided to pursue the sport in Australia, a country renowned for its swimming success. Pettersson plans on convincing her 20-year-old brother Sebastian, who swims competitively in their homeland of Sweden, to join her on her journey Down Under.

“I feel very excited about the idea to move to another country and try something new, especially with my sister,” her brother said. “I’m also looking forward to see what swimming is like in other countries.”

More Than A Swimmer

However, swimming isn’t the only reason Pettersson has her sights set on Australia.

“Swimming is the priority, but I have other options too,” she said.

Pettersson hopes to find a job in physical therapy and fitness. She also wants to surf, long-board, and experience Australian nature. According to Pettersson, all those opportunities, in addition to swimming, make the “perfect combination.”

Having competed in yards for the past four years, Pettersson is curious to know how she will fare in the universal metric system.

“I don’t know my times in meters,” she said. “I want to know what I can achieve before giving it up for good.”

Her lack of access to meters pools during her time at LIU Post did not discourage her. In fact, she said that LIU Post has not only made her a better swimmer, but also a better person.

“I’ve become so much more independent since being here, and my English has improved a lot,” she said. “I can take care of problems without my family. I’m much more organized. I’m more social and open-minded, and I’ve become less shy because I’ve met so many new people.”

Pettersson chose LIU Post due to its location, only 40 minutes outside of New York City. She also said that Stephanie Palmeri, a former LIU Post assistant coach, helped to convince her to choose the university.

“Steph was so helpful,” she said. “She made me feel as though I was wanted and she made me feel valued. I was also aware that there were a number of Swedish girls on the team at the time, which was very comforting.”

According to Palmeri, Pettersson was very interested in pursuing a degree in psychology, making a name for herself, and achieving success as a swimmer at the Division II level. She also stood out due to her impressive times prior to college, and her persistence and dedication throughout the recruiting process.

A Love-Hate Relationship

With the demanding hours and physical and mental endurance swimming requires, Pettersson admitted to having a “love-hate relationship” with the sport.

Even her coaches know her journey hasn’t been easy. With success and glory come misery and defeat, something that former LIU Post assistant coach Mike Travers experienced while coaching Pettersson.

“When Johanna first showed up on our doorstep, she was very fragile mentally, and physically not ready to swim,” he said. “Johanna was burnt out and very tired of swimming. She knew deep down her potential, but she was never able to swim quite as fast as she trained. This not only frustrated her, but made her hate swimming.”

That changed over time.

“Obviously, looking back there were the highs and lows, but I still love swimming,” she said. “I love feeling tired after the long practices. I feel good about being a swimmer. Swimming is a part of me.”

LIU Post teammate and training partner Joyce Kwok believes that Pettersson has matured as a swimmer during her time at Post. According to Kwok, “She has become more confident in her swimming and has focused on more than one event, creating more opportunities to race.”

Maureen Travers agrees.

“She was always a very self-aware swimmer but she certainly matured during her years here at Post,” she said. “She does very detailed, long-term and short-term planning for her swimming, not just with goal times but what she is going to do to meet those goals.”

Photo Courtesy: Erika Hultman

Pettersson Fan Club

Pettersson has certainly left her mark at LIU Post and will undoubtedly be missed. Those who have known her at Post have faith that she has what it takes to become a successful pro and represent Sweden.

“She’s a good role model and a great influence,” said Kwok. “She trains hard, she knows her goals and how to achieve them. She has a positive attitude and can turn a negative into a positive. She’s taught me to never give up and to chase my dreams. If she wants to go pro, she should go for it, because she deserves it.”

Her brother has no doubt that she will succeed.

“Of course she can,” he said. “She has already proven that with final spots and a couple of medals at Swedish Nationals. Johanna just needs to do the times she has done in the USA and she’s already there!”

LIU Post coaches past and present also believe that she can do whatever she puts her mind to. According to Maureen Travers, Pettersson has what it takes to keep growing in the sport.

“She is dedicated, disciplined and truly loves the sport,” she said. “I also believe she is still growing as an athlete and could go faster yet.”

Pettersson has experienced the valleys and hills of the swimscape, but her coaches know greater heights await.

“Johanna is a diamond in the rough and she has nothing to lose and all to gain by continuing her career,” said Mike Travers. “She is almost at the top of the mountain.”

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