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© Copyright 2003, Jim Loy
Way back when I was a kid, there was a pro bowler who pumped his fist. It was much like the pumping of the fist done all over sports today, but it was more restrained. He held his forearm out, at about waist level, with the fingers of the fist upward, and then pulled his hand back to his hip. When asked about it, on TV, he said that he was pulling the string that knocked over the ten pin. I couldn't remember who it was, and I suspected that this bowler was the originator of the fist pump of success in sports.
I sent email to the PBA (Professional Bowling Association), and nobody there remembered that. They gave me a couple of names that might be possibilities. But one of them said he remembered seeing boxers do that, after they knocked the opponent down. They would "pull the string" that rang the bell.