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In Poland, the bras d'honneur became known as the the "Kozakiewicz gesture" (gest Kozakiewicza). Polish pole vault jumper Wladyslaw Kozakiewicz made the gesture to Russian spectators in the stadium during the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow. The crowd supporting Soviet jumper Konstantin Volkov booed, hissed, jeered, and whistled during Kozakiewicz's spectacular performance. Having just secured his gold medal position, Kozakiewicz made the gesture in defiance to the Soviet crowd.

The photos of this incident circled the globe, with the exception of the Soviet Union and its satellites. Kozakiewicz's act received much support in Polish society, which resented Soviet control over Eastern Europe. After the 1980 Olympics ended, the Soviet ambassador to Poland demanded that Kozakiewicz be stripped of his medal over his "insult to the Soviet people". The official response of the Polish government was that the gesture had been an involuntary muscle spasm caused by his exertion.