CCI is a Correspondence Chess Club that has now been in existence for almost 40 years. It was born on 29 August 1986, when 18 Correspondence Chess friends met in Magdeburg. What were the motives behind the creation of CCI? The founding fathers wanted to create an association that offered its members not only the playing of games, i.e. the pure exchange of moves, but also wanted to appeal to Correspondence Chess Friends who were also interested in personal contacts across national borders. It must be remembered that there was no internet at that time. The post was therefore the only means of exchanging information with like-minded people.
In the years following its foundation, the new association underwent a remarkable development. More than 230 Correspondence Chess friends from many countries have been members of CCI so far, at the moment there are almost 70. Unfortunately, we cannot escape the general trend that younger chess friends in particular live out their Correspondence Chess activities mainly on Internet servers.
From the very beginning, we have endeavored to organize annual meetings. They have become a tradition over many years. We maintain a very friendly, almost family-like relationship with each other, as many family members also took part in the meetings. As a result, many friendships have developed beyond chess. The last annual meeting took place in Bebra (Hesse) in September 2019. Subsequent meetings had to be cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic.
CCI offers its members a wide range of opportunities to play: In addition to friendly games (2 games each with a partner), friendly tournaments (4 games in groups of 5), there is a cup competition in five rounds. The winners of the 5th CP round receive a certificate and an invitation to a double-round Supercup tournament. Of course, we also organise club championships and tournaments to commemorate the annual meetings.
Our SoCU tournaments (chess without computer support) are becoming increasingly popular. In autumn 2018, we started a nostalgia championship for the first time, in which non-CCI members can also participate. The 3rd tournament is now underway. By nostalgia championships, we mean Correspondence Chess like in the old days, i.e. without computers, chess programs and the internet. Despite or perhaps because of the increasing presence of the Internet, there is obviously a growing need for the traditional way of playing Correspondence Chess, and CCI offers opportunities for this with SoCU and Nostalgie.
CCI co-operates with the ‘Zeitung für Freunde des Fernschachs’ (Newspaper for Friends of Correspondence Chess), which is published every three months under the direction of Alfred Stummerer (Vienna) and offers a variety of articles on all aspects of Correspondence Chess.
The CCI board regularly produces a newsletter at the end of each quarter and sends it to all members by email or post. These newsletters contain current information from the association, the results of current tournaments, a game analysis and other things worth knowing. CCI membership is free of charge and the association has been financed exclusively by donations since 2024.