Cecilia Wollmann was chosen as the torchbearer for the Americas region, with the Bermudian sailor carrying the Olympic torch through the Athletes’ Village yesterday.

Wollmann, 18, is the youngest of the island’s eight-team squad and will be making her Olympic debut in Rio in the Laser Radials.

The Olympic torch arrived in Rio on Wednesday, with the relay starting in Niteroi, the commuter town that lies on the other side of Guanabara Bay, where Wollmann and team-mate Cameron Pimentel will compete in the sailing events next week.

The torch was carried on the classic six-metre yacht Aileen, which a Danish crew steered to a silver medal at the 1912 Olympic Games in Stockholm.

More than 12,000 torchbearers have carried the torch through 329 Brazilian cities, starting on May 3 and finishing at the Maracanã Stadium at today’s opening ceremony.

Meanwhile, Tyrone Smith has promised another eye-catching display at tonight’s curtain raiser, having caused a storm on Twitter at the 2012 London Olympics with his “dancing man” performance.

“Did something a little radical with my hair by my standards for the #Olympics #BER #ExpressYourself!” the long jumper wrote on his Facebook page.