Welcome to the website of Congress 2023!

The 2023 ICCF Congress will be hosted by the Nederlandse Bond van Correspondentieschakers (NBC) at the Double Tree by Hilton Amsterdam Centraal Station, Oosterdokstraat 4, 1011 DK Amsterdam, The Netherlands.

All ICCF Delegates and Officials are warmly invited to attend - more details will appear on this website as Congress approaches.

Amici Sumus

Sponsors

The NBC would like to thank the following individuals and organisations for their generous sponsorship of the 2023 ICCF Congress:

• International Correspondence Chess Federation (ICCF)
•  

Any contribution towards the cost of running Congress, however small, would be very much appreciated.

Please contact us if you would like to add your logo to the list of sponsors shown on this website and on other Congress materials.

Registration

Dear ICCF Delegates, Officials and Friends,

Registration for the 2023 ICCF Congress is open until 1st July 2023.

 Please register by e-mailing to jan@vosselman.net

The Registration should include following details:

• ICCF ID number, participating Congress
• Accompanying person(s)
• Date of arrival and departure
• Time of arrival and departure
• Using accompanying programme Monday (yes/no/maybe)
• Using accompanying programme Tuesday (yes/no/maybe)
• Using accompanying programme Wednesday (yes/no/maybe)
• Using price offer NBC accomodation Double Tree by Hilton Amsterdam until 26th May yes/no

If yes: To grant a smooth and quick check-in, please provide additional information:

• First name en last name
• Room type: Hilton Guestroom single or double
• Group arrival or individual arrival
• Special requests

The standard check-in time is 15.00h and check-out time 12.00h. If you require a guaranteed early check-in, the room needs to be reserved one night prior to arrival. When you need this arrangment, please leave a comment in the special requests.

Accommodation to include Continental Breakfast Buffet, can be reserved at the following cost:

Payment at the offered price via NBC is guaranteed until 26 May 2023.  After this date payment can be made independently to the hotel, if the hotel has rooms available on Congress dates.

Payment to NBC

• Account Holder’s name: Nederlandse Bond van Correspondentieschakers
• Address: c/o Zandzegge 17, 5658 BV Eindhoven
• Bank Name: ING Bank N.V., Foreign Operations, PO Box 1800, 1000 BV Amsterdam
• BIC: INGBNL2A
• IBAN:  NL75 INGB 0001 3654 00

Please use your ICCF ID Number as the reference when making payment.

It is recognised that not every Delegate will wish to be accommodated at the Double Tree by Hilton Amsterdam Centraal Station. Hotel accommodation in Amsterdam is not cheap, however, the following hotels are classified as Middle End hotels.  We don't recommend Budget hotels. Bookings need to be made directly to each of these hotels:

• Hotel De Koopermoolen, Warmoestraat 5, @ 6 min walk
• Amsterdam House Hotel, 's Gravelandseveer 3, @17 min walk (12 min metro)
• Melrose Hotel, Elandsgracht 92, @ 28 min walk (24 min tram)

Travel details

Arrivals

19 August

20:00 Jan Vosselman By train

Departures

25 August

10:00 Jan Vosselman By train

Programme of Events

Sunday 20 August

Arrival of Delegates

• 08.30 – 09.00 Refreshments in Coffee Station
• 09:00 - 12:00 Meeting of the ICCF Executive Board in the Manchester 2 Room
• 10.00 – 10.30 Refreshments in Coffee Station
•  
• 14:00 - 17:00 Meeting of the ICCF Management Committee in Manchester 2
• 15.00 – 15.30 Refreshments in Coffee Station
•  
• 20:00 - 23:00 Welcome Party in Manchester 1+2+Birmingham2

Monday 21 augustus

Day One of Congress

• 09:00 - 11:00 Opening Ceremony and Civic Reception in Glasgow 1 with speeches of Drs. Femke Halsema, mayoress of Amsterdam, Wim van Vugt, president NBC, Eric Ruch, president of ICCF
• 11:00 - 11:30 Refreshments in Coffee Station
• 11:30 - 12:30 Title Awards and Presentations in Glasgow 1
•  
• 14:00 - 18:00 Day One of Congress in Glasgow 1+2
• 16.00 – 16.30 Refreshments in Coffee Station
•  
• 20:00 - 23:00 Lecture by Prof. Dr. Jaap van den Herik (Professor Computer Science) about development  in artificial intelligence in chess and the use by Grandmasters in Leeds 2

Accompanying Person's Programme-The remainder of the afternoon and evening free to explore Amsterdam Centre.
Two good ideas for the evening:
1) Take a walk to the Zeedijk (5 min from the congress hotel) where the “Days of Heart” festival takes place on the street and sideways of the area, or
2) Take one of the three ferries at the backside of the central train station (the most lefthand side ferry is best, it takes you somewhat farther away than just across).
No payment is needed for the ferry and you have a beautiful view over Amsterdam centre from the other side of the river IJ that splits the city in two parts. At the endpoint there is a nice terrace where you can enjoy food and drinks.

Please note that neither NBC nor ICCF will be providing lunch and/or drinks during the excursions.

For Tuesday and Wednesday all accompanying persons will be given a free ticket for public transport in Amsterdam, i.e. tram, bus and metro (underground (ENG), subway (AM))

Tuesday 22 August

Day Two of Congress

• 09:00 - 12:30 Day Two of Congress in Glasgow 1+2
• 11:00 - 11:30 Refreshments in  Coffee Station
•  
• 14:00 - 18:00 Day Two of Congress in Glasgow 1+2
• 16:30 - 17:00 Refreshments in  Coffee Station
•  
• 20.00 - 23:00 Blitz Tournament in Leeds 2

Accompanying Person's Programme (Requires registration)- Day two starts with a city walk in the morning for a  visit at the Begijnhof, one of many famous 14^th century “hofjes” (courtyards) The Netherlands and Belgium have. We will leave the congress hotel at 10:00 sharp to catch Tram2 which brings us at Spui . From there the walk starts. After this visit of Begijnhof we walk to the nearby Flower Market at the Singel (canal) full of flowers, plants, seeds and tulip bulbs.
After about an hour we walk to the Rembrandtsplein (Rembrandt Square) where there is a statue of the Nachtwacht (Nightwatch) and a lot of restaurants where everyone can find a place for a lunch.
In the afternoon at 1:15 we again make a short walk of about 15 minutes to the diamond factory Gassan. And after the Gassan visit we return to the congress hotel with the metro or by a short city walk on your own.

Wednesday 23 August

Day Three of Congress

• 09:00 - 12:30 Day Three of Congress in Glasgow 1+2
• 11:00 - 11:30 Refreshments in  Coffee Station
•  
• 14:00 - 18:00 Day Three of Congress in Glasgow 1+2
• 15:30 - 16:00 Refreshments in  Coffee Station
• 14:00 - 18:00 Day Three of Congress in Glasgow 1+2
•  
• 20:00 – 22:00 Short walk to the MEC (Max Euwe Centre)

Accompanying Person's Programme (requires registration)- Today two famous museums are visited: Rijksmuseum with (amongst others) many Rembrandt paintings in the morning and Van Gogh Museum in the afternoon. We will take tram2 to these museums. Between the two visits a lunch at own expense can be taken in the Rijksmuseum.

Thursday 24 August

Excursion 24 August per coach to Delft, departure 09.00h from Congress hotel

This Congress excursion for all participants (EB, MC, NDs and accompanying persons) will consist of a visit to the old town of Delft. Traveling to Delft will take about an hour.
Delft with its historic centre is one of the oldest cities in The Netherlands with its ancient canals as you have also seen in Amsterdam.

The morning-program focuses on a visit to the Koninklijke Porceleyne Fles (Royal Delft), the pottery factory (and nowadays museum)  where the famous Delft Blue is produced. Afterwards, after a short walk along the canals to the historic center of Delft, you are free to explore Delft in the way you prefer. A visit to the Nieuwe Kerk and the Vermeer Museum, all situated on and around the Grote Markt, is among the possibilities. Tickets will be issued to you in advance.

We will visit the historic center of Delft, one of the oldest VOC-cities with its ancient canals. Lots of possibilities to have a lunch at your own expense.

The afternoon program starts at one of the most beautiful market squares in the Netherlands. Standing in the middle of the square you will catch at one glance the birthplace of Johannes Vermeer (one of the greatest Dutch painters of the Golden Age), the beautiful City Hall (the oldest part of which was built around 1200) not to mention the impressive Nieuwe Kerk (the second tallest church in the Netherlands containing the mausoleum of Prins Willem van Oranje-Nassau). A 360-degree photo will show, in addition to these highlights, a variety of cozy restaurants and (Delft Blue) stores.

Coach departure 17.00h back to Congress hotel

Closing Banquet

The closing banquet, hosted by ICCF, will commence at 20.00 in the Eastwood Beer and Grill restaurant.

Friday 25 August

Departure of Delegates.

Or  spend some more time in Amsterdam: 13 tips gratis in Amsterdam https://www.yourlittleblackbook.me/nl/gratis-in-amsterdam/

Information for Chess Players in the Netherlands

The International Correspondence Chess Federation (ICCF) is the international body for correspondence chess. Although ICCF is recognised by and affiliated to FIDE, it operates independently of FIDE and is regarded as the highest international authority for correspondence chess.

The NBC is the national body representing The Netherlands in ICCF. Modern correspondence chess is generally played online, although there is still an option for national and international postal tournaments for those few people who still prefer to use that format.

Each year, ICCF hold a "Congress" hosted by a different member federation; in 2023 the host federation will be The Netherlands, and Congress will be held in Amsterdam from 20-24 August. Essentially this is a business meeting where delegates and officials from each of the ICCF national federations gather to make decisions about tournaments, rules, etc.

Congress always has a social element; there is a welcome party, excursions, some informal chess events, and a closing banquet, etc. many delegates bring their families to Congress every year.

NBC would like to use this opportunity to engage with chess players in The Netherlands; we would like to invite you to participate in Congress, and hopefully eventually to consider taking up correspondence chess.

Players are cordially invited to the following events:

• Welcome Party (Sunday 20 August at 20:00): This will be a social gathering, where you will have the chance to meet Dutch and international correspondence chess players.  If you have any questions about correspondence chess, this is your opportunity as there will be several correspondence players and officials present, including grand masters, even perhaps some former correspondence world champions.  Officials from NBC and ICCF will be happy to advise you on getting started in the game or discuss any aspect of correspondence chess (including the sticky topic of computer engines!).  A light buffet will be provided.
• Lecture (Monday 21 August at 20.00): by Prof. Dr. Jaap van den Herik (Professor Computer Science) about development  in artificial intelligence in chess and the use by Grandmasters in Leeds 2.
• Blitz Tournament (Tuesday 22 August at 20:00): Another regular event at Congress is the annual blitz tournament, chess players from The Netherlands are again invited to participate in the tournament; this is another chance to get to know correspondence chess specialists from around the world.
• Visit to the MEC (Wednesday 23 August at 20.00):

Registration for any of the above events is free and is available by e-mailing to jan@vosselman.net.

Registration is essential as places are limited.  If you later find that you are not able to attend, your cancellation would be highly appreciated by email to jan@vosselman.net  so that we can allocate your place to someone else.

For further information about correspondence chess in The Netherlands please see this website on the other pages.

If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to get in touch.

Contact the Congress Organisors

Committee: Wim van Vugt, Joop Jansen, Henk van den Bos and Jan Vosselman.

To contact the Congress Organisers, please email: jan@vosselman.net