After his prep career came to an end, Peterson continued competing at the international level with great success. At the 1972 Munich Olympics Peterson won gold in the 90 kg division. He followed that up with Bronze at the '73 World Championships in Tehran and Gold at the Mexico City hosted '75 Pan American Games. At the 1976 Montreal Olympics, Peterson would once again return to the podium with Silver in the 90 kg weight class. at the conclusion of the Montreal Olympic games, Peterson would retire from competitive wrestling to focus on coaching.