The IWBF Central America and Caribbean Championship in Costa Rica will now start a day earlier due to the last minute withdrawal of Guatemala and Honduras ©IWBF

Competition at the International Wheelchair Basketball Federation (IWBF) at the Central America and Caribbean Championship has been brought forward after the late withdrawal of Honduras and Guatemala.

With the tournament set to start tomorrow, the action is now scheduled to begin today due to Honduras and Guatemala pulling out. 

The teams competing at the Gimnasio Nacional in the Costa Rican capital of San Jose will now consist of the hosts, Nicaragua, Puerto Rico, Mexico, El Salvador and Dominican Republic.

The format of the competition has now changed to a round-robin, with final classification games due to take place on the last day, Saturday (October 27).

Mexico will meet Nicaragua, Puerto Rico play El Salvador and Dominican Republic come up against Costa Rica on what is now the opening day. 

The IWBF Central America and Carribean Championship in Costa Rica, originally due to start tomorrow, has been brought forward by a day after Guatemala and Honduras withdrew ©IWBF
The IWBF Central America and Carribean Championship in Costa Rica, originally due to start tomorrow, has been brought forward by a day after Guatemala and Honduras withdrew ©IWBF

"IWBF Americas is disappointed that Guatemala and now Honduras have had to withdraw at such late notice," IWBF Americas’ competition officer Steve Bach said.

"We hope they are able to resolve the issues that are preventing them from competing to come back and participate in future tournaments."

The Championships serve as a qualifying event for the 2019 Parapan American Games in Lima with two teams progressing to this competition.

The last event in 2016 saw Mexico win, with Puerto Rico getting the silver medal and El Salvador bronze.