Zoe Pedersen has gone from strength to strength over the past few years, progressing through the age group pathway before qualifying for her first Aquablack team and becoming World Junior champion in the 50m butterfly in Romania in 2025.

She began learning to swim at her local pool, before shifting to Northern Arena when it opened in 2010. There she has developed over the past 15 years, progressing from the swim school into the Coast Swimming Club. Her family has been heavily involved in water sports, particularly sailing, wind surfing and ocean swimming, so water has always been an important part of her life.

Pedersen first qualified for Division II in 2021, and qualified for the NZ Age Group Championships the following year. It was here that she won her first age group title and narrowly missed qualifying for the 2022 Junior Pan Pacific Championships as a 15-year-old. The following year, she was selected for the 2023 World Aquatics Junior Swimming Championships. 

On her first New Zealand team, Pedersen made the final of the 50m freestyle. She backed this up the following year by qualifying for the 2024 Junior Pan Pacific Championships, where she continued to break NZ age records and made individual finals in the 50m and 100m freestyle. She then made her senior international debut at the 2024 World Aquatics Swimming Championships (25m) in Budapest, where she continued her record-breaking form. 

Pedersen is also an accomplished athlete in surf lifesaving, having broken Youth World Records at their 2024 World Championships.

Whilst completing her Year 13 studies at Whangaparaoa College, the teenager made her Aquablack debut in Singapore at the 2025 World Aquatics Championships, where she placed 24th in the women's 50m butterfly. 

Just weeks later, Pedersen travelled to Romania to represent New Zealand at her second World Aquatics Junior Swimming Championships. There she became World Junior Champion in the women's 50m butterfly, breaking the New Zealand age record with a stellar time of 25.63. She was also a finalist in the 100m freestyle

Pedersen believes her morning training sessions set up her day. She focuses on celebrating the little wins along the way, whilst balancing this with other interests outside of the pool. She loves spending time at the beach, hanging out with friends and family, and trying new things.

Favourite Quote: “The past can hurt, but the way I see it, you can either run from it or learn from it.” – Rafiki (Lion King)