Jack Smyth excelled in track and field competition and established a name for himself in the jumping events. Smyth possessed an outstanding academic record and after graduation from high school at the age of 15, he competed in Western Canadian Track events. In 1953, Smyth was named to the Dominion All-Star Track and Field Team and was one of the youngest members of the Canadian team at the 1954 British Empire Games in Vancouver. He placed seventh in the hop, step, and jump with a leap of 44’ 6” and later that year broke the Dominion Junior record in the same event.

In 1955, Smyth broke the juvenile record and earned a spot on the Canadian team for the Pan American Games in Mexico City. Smyth finished a strong fifth in the hop, step, and jump and established Canadian records in the Open, Native, Junior, and Better than Record performance by a Canadian not competing in the Dominion with a leap of 49’ 2.5”.

Smyth received an athletic scholarship from the University of Houston where he continued his athletic career. In the hurdles, Smyth set a Missouri Valley Conference record of 24.1 seconds, captured second place in the Texas Relays triple jump, and was Houston’s lead-off man on the Mile Relay team. His other outstanding achievements include a second place finish in the American Athletic Union Championships with a triple jump of 49’ 6” and the broad jump record at the West Texas Relays at Odessa. Smyth was named the outstanding track athlete at Houston in 1958 and 1959. In his junior year, Smyth shattered the Drake Relays record in the hop, step, and jump and helped the Cougars set a new world record for the Sprint Medley with an opening quarter time of 48.3 seconds. He aided in the development of indoor track competition with the Manitoba Track and Field Association and instructed numerous seminars and clinics.