Badminton's Paralympic debut on Wednesday was hailed as a "dream come true" by players, 29 years after it became an Olympic sport. 

Badminton was first played at the Olympic Games in Barcelona in 1992 and now 90 players will battle for medals in 14 events over five days at Tokyo's Yoyogi National Stadium in the inaugural Paralympics tournament. 

"It's been a long, long time, 14 years for me actually," said 30-year-old British player Krysten Coombs, who has been involved from the fledgling days of the sport. 

"I was at the first tournament back in 2008 that had short stature," added the men's SH6 category world No. 5. 

"It's a dream come true and I can't wait to get started." 

The honor of the first match win in Paralympic history went to Germany's third seed Valeska Knoblauch, who breezed past countrywoman Elke Rongen 21-7, 21-8 in the women's WH1 category. 

"It feels pretty amazing," said Knoblauch, who also will go down as the player who hit the very first badminton serve in the Paralympics. 

"I was very nervous. It's so different to other tournaments." 

Badminton games take place till this Sunday and a total of nine Chinese will contend for medals in Tokyo. 

Dong Jiong, the head coach of the Chinese team, said they are vying for three gold medals. It is challenging for the athletes to adapt to the wind and lighting at the venue, he said. 

"It is hard to predict results, Dong said. "The levels of athletes have changed during the past year, and our team have also improved. I hope they can enjoy the games and show the best of them."

The International Paralympic Committee finally recognized the Badminton World Federation (BWF) as a para sports organization in 2015 and selected the sport for Paralympic inclusion in Tokyo, four years after the BWF had integrated para badminton into its structures. 

There are six categories of para badminton, with players in wheelchairs taking part in the WH1 or WH2. 

Other categories are for standing players who have impairments to lower limbs (SL3/SL4), upper limbs (SU5) or are of short stature (SH6). 

The sport makes quite a spectacle, with two courts set up for wheelchair play alongside two for standing athletes. 

One major difference is that wheelchair singles take place on a playing area just half the width of the court. 

(With input from AFP)