Yvonne Osterholm's William D Passed Away

Dressage

Finland

Yvonne Osterholm's career-starting horse William D has passed away. He was 23 years old.

William D was a 2003 born Finnish warmblood gelding by Briar out of Windy (by Vivaldi x Magnifique x Sombrero). He was bred by Osterholm at her farm Dalvik in Finland.

From Young Horse to Grand Prix

The Swedish based Yvonne Osterholm is originally from Inkoo, Finland, but built her professional career in Sweden, first as a, assistant rider at Jan Brink's yard for six years, followed by six months in Germany. Since 2011 she runs her own stable in Höganäs, Skåne, Sweden.

He was the first horse she produced from young horse level to Grand Prix herself

She competed him nationally in Sweden, first in the young horse classes, for instance in Falsterbo in 2008. They placed 11th at the 2008 Swedish Young Horse Championships. In 2009 the pair was selected as reserves for the World Young Horse Championships in Verden, a decision which Osterholm appealed citing better scores than selected pair Stella Hagelstam/Fernet. Osterholm won the appeal, but in the end Fernet went to Verden nonetheless.

"I decided not to go because he had been pretty wild in Falsterbo and it was my first time also," Yvonne told Eurodressage. "I remember I made the decision because I was afraid to do something stupid for both the horse and myself. " The pair instead gained more mileage and became 9th at the 2009 Swedish Young Horse Championships.

Yvonne and William D first competed at national small tour level in 2010 and moved to Inter II level in 2017 with Grand Prix starts in 2018 through 2019.

Perseverance Matters

"The journey hasn’t been easy, but there hasn’t been a single day in all these years that I would have wanted to trade him for anyone else," said Yvonne looking back on her career with William. "He was the most loyal friend anyone could find, always resting his soft muzzle on me and snuggling into my arms whether I was happy or sad. I’ve told friends that Wille was the source of comfort I could always turn to when things felt hopeless."

To Eurodressage she said that William taught her an important lesson of perseverance. "We competed only in Sweden. Our results were not great always but he taught me very much. I remember once when I came home from a competition and he had been wild again. I was working at Tullstorp for Jan Brink at that time. I was sad because people had said to me to get rid of him before I get hurt. He was four years old. Jan just said to me: learn to ride him and you will get your first GP horse. And so I did."

She concluded, "Wille taught me to be brave and that you always have to figure out how the horse wants to be ridden. To use your imagination and not give up."

Sad Goodbye

William D was retired from sport but stayed with Yvonne until his last day.

He stayed with me all the time. We rode bareback with just a halter on the last years," she said. "He also got to be out on the field with my baby horses and he loved it. He just was a horse you could talk to without being able to have a real conversation. He had been with me for such a long time and had become a really close friend. It feels weird that he is not around anymore, but he got to end his life when it was needed and that is the most important thing.

Osterholm announced the passing of "Wille" on 20 August 2026.

"Losing a best friend is painful, but it’s so much more important to help your best friend when they need it," she wrote. "Wille had an intestinal obstruction, and an abdominal surgery would have been necessary to possibly save him. For me, that was unthinkable, since he was 23 years old and I had promised him that he would never have to suffer and that I would do my absolute best to ensure he could pass away peacefully at home when that day came. It didn’t make it any less sad, but it still feels good that I got veterinary help right away and that he was in good spirits when we hugged right before his last breath."