Władysław Kozakiewicz
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| Olympic medal record | |||
| Men's athletics | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gold | Moscow 1980 | Pole vault | |
Władysław Kozakiewicz (born December 8, 1953) is a Polish pole vault jumper. Kozakiewicz was born in Šalčininkai (Polish: Sołeczniki) near Vilnius, Lithuania, to a Polish family.
Kozakiewicz broke the world record three times, was European Indoor Champion in 1977 and 1979, Polish Champion ten times, and won a gold medal during the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow.
In 1984 he defected to West Germany, where he won the national title twice, in 1986 and 1987.
[edit] Kozakiewicz's gesture
In Poland the Italian elbow gesture (shown below left), known under various names, has become "Kozakiewicz's gesture" (gest Kozakiewicza). Kozakiewicz showed this gesture to the Russian public at the stadium during the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow. The crowd supported Soviet jumper Volkov and was booing and whistling during Kozakiewicz's performance. After securing the gold medal, an angered Kozakiewicz showed the gesture to the stadium. He later broke the world record by clearing 578 cm. The photos of this episode circled the globe, with the exception of the Soviet Union and its satellites. The Soviet ambassador to Poland demanded that Kozakiewicz be stripped of his medal for an "insult to the Soviet people". The official response of the Polish government was that the gesture was an involuntary muscle spasm caused by his exertion.
[edit] External links
| Olympic champions in men's pole vault |
|---|
| 1896: Welles Hoyt | 1900: Irving Baxter | 1904: Charles Dvorak | 1906: Fernand Gonder | 1908: Edward Cook Alfred Gilbert | 1912: Harry Babcock | 1920: Frank Foss | 1924: Lee Barnes | 1928: Sabin Carr | 1932: William Miller | 1936: Earle Meadows | 1948: Guinn Smith | 1952: Bob Richards | 1956: Bob Richards | 1960: Don Bragg | 1964: Fred Hansen | 1968: Bob Seagren | 1972: Wolfgang Nordwig | 1976: Tadeusz Ślusarski | 1980: Władysław Kozakiewicz | 1984: Pierre Quinon | 1988: Sergei Bubka | 1992: Maksim Tarasov | 1996: Jean Galfione | 2000: Nick Hysong | 2004: Tim Mack |
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