French cyclist Jacques Simon was 18-years-old when he began competing as an amateur in the late 1950s. In 1959 Simon was both the champion of Brittany and the French champion in the team time trial. The following year he won a stage of the Route de France and finished seventh at the amateur road world championships. These results earned him a place at the 1960 Roma Olympics where he finished seventh in 100 kilometres team time trial. Simon turned professional in 1961 and won the one-day classic Paris-Camembert in 1963, along with riding in that year’s Vuelta a España. After a disappointing run of form, however, he returned to the amateur ranks in 1966, before retiring in 1972.
France