Hosts Nicaragua began their pursuit of the men's wheelchair basketball gold medal at the Para Central American Games by thrashing Honduras ©Managua 2018

Hosts Nicaragua began their pursuit of the men's wheelchair basketball gold medal at the Para Central American Games by thrashing Honduras in Managua.

Nicaragua were in dominant form as they recorded a comfortable 82-26 win over their Honduran opponents at the Polideportivo España facility.

The home side controlled proceedings from start to finish as they established a 31-4 lead by the end of the first quarter.

Nicaragua then extended their advantage to 62-6 at the halfway point before they wrapped up a straightforward win with another ruthless display in the second half.

Elsewhere in the men's event, Costa Rica overcame Panama 56-42 and Guatemala edged El Salvador 46-40.

Men's wheelchair basketball action headlined the opening day of competition at the event ©Managua 2018
Men's wheelchair basketball action headlined the opening day of competition at the event ©Managua 2018

"Honduras is a country with a growing sport, like us and what we tried to do was to involve all the players in this match, it was three months of previous training and that allowed us to have good conditions," Nicaragua coach Omar Alvarado told El 19 Digital.

"In the coming days we hope to win with a higher score and be unbeaten to maintain the Central American Championship."

In the women's tournament, Nicaragua again got the better of Honduras with a narrow 7-0 success.

Guatemala also got off to a winning start as they beat El Salvador 12-4.

Around 250 athletes are expected to compete at the second edition of the Para Central American Games, which are due to conclude on Sunday (January 28).