Every time Endel Ots rewatched a Lars Petersen video as a budding young rider, his aspirations of one day competing in the Olympics seemed increasingly possible. But as he matured, Ots gained a deeper understanding of the physical, mental and emotional demands required to make it to the top of the sport.
“Everything has to line up perfectly at the right time with the right horse, the right coach and the right combination of circumstances,” he said. “Early in my career, I didn’t want to put that much pressure on myself. It’s easy to dream about, but you eventually find out just how hard it is.”
Ots grew up riding on his family farm in Wisconsin, and after a brief focus on jumping, he found his true calling in dressage. At 23, he was gifted with the opportunity to train under the tutelage of Hubertus Schmidt in Germany and later worked with his childhood idol Petersen.
After a successful career with Lucky Strike from the Young Horse to Intermediate levels, Ots met the ride of a lifetime in 2023. When he first sat on the now 15-year-old Westphalian gelding Bohemian, he immediately texted potential owner Heidi Humphries of Zen Elite Equestrian Center. “I told Heidi I would give her anything—a kidney, an arm—if we could do this,” Ots recalled. “I feel like every horse I’d ever ridden prepared me to ride ‘Bo.’ He’s a very special animal, and I fell in love with him.”
With his previous rider Olympian Cathrine Laudrup-Dufour, Bo earned FEI European Championship medals, finished fourth individually at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics and is one of the few horses to have achieved a 90% or better in a Grand Prix Freestyle. Laudrup-Dufour told Ots that Bo was an emotional horse and connected deeply to his rider’s emotions.
“I’ve found that to be very true. With these types of horses, you really have to respect who they are,” he said. “If you learn to respect that, then you can really create your own connection with the horse’s personality and that is very important to me.”
By December 2023, Ots learned he’d been gifted with the ride after Humphries purchased Bo and offered him the reins. After just a few months together, the pair was named to the 2024 Paris U.S. Olympic dressage team short list and were later announced as the traveling reserve.
Here, Ots talks about his experience at the Paris Games, his special partnership with Bo and why dressage keeps him humble and endlessly curious.
PH: Can you tell us about your experience at the 2024 Paris Olympics?
EO: It was an incredible experience—one I’ll never forget. Steffen Peters has been one of my heroes since I was a kid, so being in the same team environment with him was a dream come true. But it was definitely mentally challenging; the pressure at that level is immense, and having the right people around you to help keep your mindset strong is everything. Honestly, the riding itself felt like the easy part. It’s keeping your mind calm and focused under that kind of pressure that’s truly the test. But as I like to remind myself—pressure is a privilege.
PH: Was making an Olympic team always a goal for you?
EO: When I was younger it was a big focus for me. Growing up, I kept rewatching those Lars Petersen VHS tapes until they were worn out. Later, it was always in the back of my mind, but not something I focused on every day. Instead, I concentrated on my weekly, monthly and yearly goals, and I really learned from that. The universe tends to provide the right things when you maybe don’t expect them.
In hindsight, some of the worst things that have happened to me turned out to be the best things. So, I resigned myself to the fact that if it happens, awesome. But I didn’t make myself neurotic about it or feel like I had to do it to prove myself. Setting the intention and writing down my goals and thinking about them was helpful, but I didn’t necessarily worry exactly how everything would work out. I found that to be a healthy way of looking at things.
When I got the opportunity to be the reserve for Paris, I decided to go for it. Like Wayne Gretzky said, “You miss all the shots you don’t take.” So, take the shot. What’s the worst that can happen? You don’t do well. So what? You learned something in the process.
PH: What’s it like to ride a horse like Bohemian?
EO: There are so many different emotions that come up with that question. I feel very lucky and am incredibly and forever grateful to Heidi for everything she’s done to support me on this horse and for believing in me.
Bo has a real sense of presence and his own place in the universe. He’s very much an old soul in this way. In the show ring, I know not to push him too much. With some horses, you can just step on the gas, but with him, you have to go into it together. He has a little bit of anxiety in the show ring, but it’s not negative. It’s more like excitement, as if he knows it’s important. But if you push or overface him, he falls out of balance here and there. He’s not spooky, but he notices everything when he really feels you. So, I have to stay with him, press for energy at some points and help him balance at other times.
Bo is also a bit like a cat. I’ll come into the barn in the morning and he wants love and cuddles, but then he’s done with me and wants to go look out his window and do his own thing. I respect when he wants his space; he seems to have some deep thoughts when he wants to be alone. When I give him scratches or little massages in his stall, he points his nose where he wants me to scratch him. He does it in such an intense and intelligent way—I’m not used to horses communicating on that level.
PH: What have you and Bohemian been up to since the Olympics?
EO: My original plan was to aim for the FEI World Cup™ Finals, but the universe had other plans. After Paris, Bo dealt with a sinus issue that required some time off. But he doesn’t owe anyone a thing—he’s already given so much. He’s such a special soul, and my main focus now is his happiness and well-being. As long as he enjoys his work, that’s what matters most.
PH: There are some big events on the calendar in 2026. Can you tell us about any exciting upcoming goals you have with Bo?
EO: Looking ahead, I’m hopeful for the World Championships. Experiencing the Olympics only made me hungrier for more. But it all depends on how he feels. Before the Olympic trials, I’d only been able to ride him for two weeks. Now that we’ve had more time to build our partnership, I’m really excited to see what’s possible. More than anything, I want to contribute as a strong and supportive team player for the U.S.
PH: Can you talk about your overall training philosophy?
EO: This may sound a bit crazy, but I work with a hypnotherapist, and I try to split myself into several different Endels. I have Endel the coach, Endel the trainer and Endel the groom. And I try to go into these different mindsets because I’ve experienced all those different positions.
For example, as a coach, if I see scoring that doesn’t make sense, I tell my student and advise them to be nice and do the right things but acknowledge that it was maybe wrong. I want them to be happy and proud of what they did; it should be about doing your personal best. When it turns into something other than doing your personal best, things usually go south.
Lars once told me that dressage is a little bit like one of those finger-trap toys we played with as kids, meaning sometimes the harder you try, the more you get stuck. In riding Bo, it really made me dip into all those different places.
I find this kind of philosophy an important force in my life and what’s helped me in the sport. The dressage community can be hard sometimes. Everyone wants to be first. I get that, and every dog has his day. But I am grateful for such an outpour of support from everyone.
PH: What helps keep you centered?
EO: I like going to the gym and lifting weights. I find it very calming. And I love movies—it’s good to take a mental break from riding because it’s easy to get stuck in a loop or worry about this and that and obsess over mistakes or think I should have done something differently.
Maybe there were things I could make a little better, but there’s no need to rewrite the whole book. As riders, we have to fight our tendency to make too many changes all the time. And you can’t get too hypnotized by the scores on any given day—good or bad. It’s about doing the best job you could on that day. It all evens out in the end. Sometimes it’s best to play the cards you were dealt the best way you can without overthinking all the things that you could’ve done differently.
PH: What’s kept you involved in the sport of dressage?
EO: I started out as a jumper and did quite well as a kid. But for some reason, I became fascinated by dressage—the idea that you can never be completely perfect and there’s always something to improve. It’s a sport that keeps you humble and endlessly curious. The constant pursuit of refinement is what’s kept me hooked.
PH: What’s the hardest part of the sport for you?
EO: The mental side, without a doubt. It’s so easy to over-try in dressage, but when you push too hard, things unravel. The challenge is to stay clear-headed—to know what’s possible, stay present and not force it. Every horse and rider has strengths and weaknesses, and part of the art is learning to accept them. You find ways to highlight the positives and manage the weaknesses with patience and grace.
PH: Why do you think you’ve been so successful as a dressage rider?
EO: I’ve been fortunate to have incredible horses throughout my career, though many of them weren’t easy. Most were horses that others struggled with. In working with those types, I learned to focus on what I can control rather than what I can’t. That’s probably been the key to any success I’ve had—making the best out of whatever the situation is and helping each horse reach his potential, no matter the starting point.
PH: What makes a good horse person?
EO: I think horse people are a bit different—maybe even a little odd, in the best way. Many of us aren’t great at socializing in the “normal” world, but we have this deep understanding with animals. For me, I connect with horses because they’re completely honest. People can hide behind words, but horses never lie. They show you exactly how they feel. That authenticity is something I value deeply, both in horses and in life.
