The public flocked onto the streets of Barbacena to welcome the Olympic Torch on Sunday.

Sassa, who helped Brazil win the Olympic volleyball title at Beijing 2008, cried with joy as the public cheered her name. "It was more emotional than winning a gold medal," she said.

In Barbacena, which is a major producer of flowers in Brazil, the torch was showered in rose petals dropped from a helicopter and from windows.