Nico comes from Luxembourg and is a trained civil engineer. The 71-year-old recently retired. For the last 15 years, he was a member of the management board of a large housing association specialising in social housing.

Nico achieved his international breakthrough in correspondence chess in 2006 and 2008, when he began playing significantly more than in previous years. In 2009, he crowned his rise with a commanding 1st place finish at the 45th British Correspondence Chess Championship BFCC-45 with 10 out of 13 and exceeding the SIM norm. During this period, his ICCF rating rose from 2400 to 2502 within two years. In 2014, he achieved a further increase to 2541, followed by a slight decline, which was mainly due to the general increase in the number of draws.
Particularly noteworthy is his shared first place with Dutch GM and two-time world champion Ron Langeveld in the final of the 21st Correspondence Chess Olympiad (2020–2023), half a point below GM norm on board 2.

When asked about his hobbies, Nico cheerfully reveals:

“I really enjoy travelling and can often combine this with my passion for football. Football on the pitch, not or only to a very limited extent on television. “My” team [F91 Dudelange] qualifies for a European cup almost every year, so I like to travel with them and explore new cities. It's always a wonderful experience for me to watch a game in a big stadium and enjoy the atmosphere, even if the team's results are very modest. ;-)”

“My best experience,” he continues, “was four years ago in the Champions League qualifiers. We won the home game against KF Tirana 1-0 and won the return leg in Tirana 2-1. At the time, I managed to persuade a Tirana fan to switch sides; we have now been very happily married for two years.”