The official song for the New Zealand Olympic team for London 2012 is written by a professional street performer Sam RB.

The musician, who often busks in Auckland, will head to London where she will meet athletes and perform at an official New Zealand Olympic Committee function just ahead of the opening of the Olympic Games.

Sam RB won a competition, developed by the New Zealand Olympic Committee and the Play it Strange Music Trust, in which she had to write a song that would inspire Olympic athletes. There were more than 300 entries and 25,000 New Zealanders registered their vote for their favourite song.

She said her experiences busking also influenced the song: “I feel proud to be a New Zealander when I’m busking and see the genuine love people have for our beautiful country.”

Watch Sam RB’s winning song Stand Tall.

Emma Spedding