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Grand Master Jeff Smith’s honors include the first PKA World Light Heavyweight Championship (1974), the first Bruce Lee Award, the Black Belt Hall of Fame as Fighter of the Year, the Taekwondo Hall of Fame (2007), the Martial Arts Professional Lifetime Achievement Award (2008), the Joe Lewis Eternal Warrior Award (2013), and promotion to 10th Degree and Grand Master in 2016.1,2,3,4,5,6

Awards and honors

Year Honor Source
1972 Black Belt magazine cover (December), in action vs. John Worley 7,8
1973–74 First recipient of the Bruce Lee Award, selected by Linda Lee and Professional Karate magazine 2,4,9
1974 First PKA World Light Heavyweight Champion 1,10
1974 Number-one point fighter in the United States, Professional Karate magazine 11,12
1975 Black Belt Hall of Fame, Fighter of the Year 3,2
— Named one of Washington’s top athletes by Washingtonian magazine 2
1987 Semi-Contact World Team Cup, awarded to coach Jeff Smith, WAKO World Championships, Munich 13
2007 Taekwondo Hall of Fame 4,6,14
2008 Martial Arts Professional Lifetime Achievement Award (seventh recipient) 5
2013 Joe Lewis Eternal Warrior Award, Battle of Atlanta 6,15
2016 Promoted to 10th Degree and Grand Master by the Professional Karate Commission 6,16
2017 Cover and Lifetime Achievement section, Who’s Who in the Martial Arts, Legends Edition 6
— Karate Masters Hall of Fame, inducted at “The Gathering,” the 50-year celebration of sport karate 17
— Go2Karate Lifetime Achievement Award 18,19
— Listed among the greatest kickboxers of all time by Black Belt 20
— Listed among PKA Worldwide’s greatest fighters 21

Magazine covers

Smith appeared on at least sixteen magazine covers between 1972 and 2013, including Black Belt, Professional Karate, Karate Illustrated, Official Karate and Inside Karate. The full list is in the Archive.8

Ceremonies

Smith has become one of the sport’s living ceremonial figures. With Joe Corley and Bill Wallace he presents the Joe Lewis Eternal Warrior Award at the Battle of Atlanta; recipients include John Corcoran and, in 2018, Perry Kelly.22

Frequently asked questions

What awards has Jeff Smith won?

Among them: first PKA World Light Heavyweight Champion (1974), first Bruce Lee Award, Black Belt Hall of Fame Fighter of the Year, Taekwondo Hall of Fame (2007), Martial Arts Professional Lifetime Achievement Award (2008) and the Joe Lewis Eternal Warrior Award (2013).1,2,4,5,6

Was Jeff Smith the first Bruce Lee Award winner?

Yes. He was the first recipient of the Bruce Lee Award, selected by Linda Lee and Professional Karate magazine.2,4

Related pages

Work with Grand Master Jeff Smith

School owners can book a free Growth Diagnostic: 30 minutes with Grand Master Jeff Smith and 30 minutes with Grand Master Stephen Oliver. See how it works.

Sources

  1. “World Professional Karate Championships 1974,” contemporaneous magazine report reprinted at Backkicks
  2. USAdojo, “Jeff Smith” profile
  3. Martial Arts Wealth Mastery, “Leadership Lessons from Grand Master Jeff Smith”
  4. Taekwondo Hall of Fame, Hall of Fame page
  5. Martial Arts Professional, “Lifetime Achievement Awards”
  6. Wikipedia, “Jeff Smith (martial arts)”
  7. Black Belt, “The Flying Side Kick”
  8. MA-Mags martial arts magazine cover index, search “Jeff Smith”
  9. Japanese Bruce Lee fan blog translating a Linda Lee statement on the Bruce Lee trophy
  10. Wikipedia, “Professional Karate Association”
  11. Herb Borkland, “The Champion Who Conquered the Ring and the School Business,” MAIA Hub
  12. USAdojo, “The History of Karate in America”
  13. “Kickboxing World Championships (WAKO, 1987),” contemporaneous magazine report reprinted at Backkicks
  14. Taekwondo Hall of Fame, Hall of Honor page
  15. Martial Arts Wealth Mastery, “Extraordinary Teaching” page
  16. Martial Arts Who’s Who Directory, “Jeff Smith” listing
  17. USAdojo, “The Gathering: Celebrating 50 Years of Sport Karate”
  18. Go2Karate, “Jeff Smith Interview”
  19. Go2Karate, “Congratulations Grand Master Jeff Smith”
  20. Black Belt, “The Greatest Kickboxers of All Time”
  21. PKA Worldwide, “History”
  22. MAIA Hub, “John Corcoran: The Pen Is Still Mightier Than the Sword”