Over-the-board Players Who Also Play Correspondence Chess
Although nowadays the strongest correspondence players are specialists, a number of notable players in over-the-board (OTB) chess have in the past played postal games during their chess career.
| World OTB Champion | OTB Grandmaster | OTB International Master | OTB FIDE Master | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| World Correspondence Champion | Olga Rubtsova | Alberic O'Kelly de Galway; Viacheslav Ragozin | Hans Berliner Yakov Estrin; C.J.S. Purdy; Mikhail Umansky; Ivar Bern | Gert Jan Timmerman |
| Correspondence Grandmaster | Ulf Andersson; Igor Bondarevsky; Aivars Gipslis; Curt Hansen; Jonny Hector; Jānis Klovāns; Olita Rause; Lothar Schmid; Duncan Suttles | Janos Balogh; Olaf Barda; Jean Hebert; Jonathan Penrose; Richard Polaczek; Nikolai Papenin; Roman Chytilek; Bela Toth | Martin Kreuzer; Peter Hertel; Auvo Kujala | |
| Correspondence International Master | Alexander Tolush |
Paul Keres, an Estonian sometimes regarded as the strongest player never to become world champion, played many games of correspondence chess, apparently because he had difficulty finding players in his native country anywhere near strong enough to give him a decent game. OTB world champions Alexander Alekhine and Max Euwe also played. Ulf Andersson also achieved very high ratings in both ICCF and FIDE, remaining in the FIDE Top 100 until June 2002 and consistently ranked second on ICCF. Andrei Sokolov is another OTB GM who has recently taken up email chess. World Correspondence Champion Hans Berliner is also an OTB International Master.
Read more about this topic: Correspondence Chess
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