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Unlike the stars of winter, few of Canada's summer Olympians have managed to parlay their successes into lucrative corporate sponsorship or endorsement gigs. Even gold medalists typically fade from public view by the time the next hockey season gets under way.

But this year's crop will find it particularly tough to turn gold medals into gold after Beijing.

Blame it on 2010 and the fact Canadian companies are pouring most of their sports marketing dollars into promotions tied to the next Winter Games, in Vancouver.

“We appreciate the value of the summer Olympians,” said one marketing executive whose company is a big spender on sports sponsorships. “But in the marketing game, the second Beijing is over, the only thing that will matter to Canadian corporations is Vancouver and Whistler.”

It has always been an uphill struggle for those Canadians who choose the summer sports over more lucrative winter mainstays such as hockey, figure skating, skiing and even curling.

The reasons? Start with the obvious fact that Canada is essentially a country obsessed with winter sports, in which our record of success happens to be significantly better. Also, media, marketing and sponsorship budgets are larger in winter and many of the athletes get more exposure than their summer colleagues.

“I believe the most significant reason is the difference in profile before they get to the Olympics,” said Kevin Albrecht, the head of Insight Sports and a former agent.

Albrecht offers the example of two sports with similar demographics: figure skating and gymnastics. The skaters get major television time all winter, thanks to extensive coverage of the Grand Prix circuit and the various championships. After the Olympics, they can cash in through the ice shows and TV specials.

But we rarely see the gymnasts outside the Olympics. Which helps explain why a gold medal in Athens failed to translate into riches for the likes of charismatic Kyle Shewfelt. He counts Bell Canada as his only major corporate sponsor and estimates his total income from public appearances at no more than $40,000 annually.

That's in stark contrast to the millions raked in by U.S. gold medalists in high-profile summer sports, led by swimmer Michael Phelps, whose six gold medals in Athens attracted a slew of corporate backers. The list includes McDonald's, Visa, Omega, PowerBar and Matsunichi, a Hong Kong consumer electronics maker.

“Gold medals typically get some awareness and attention [in Canada],” said Keith McIntyre, the president of K.Mac & Associates, which advises companies on sports marketing strategies. “It doesn't mean it's a bag of riches for them. That is for very few athletes in this country.”

Companies that have linked their brands to the Olympic rings, such as Rona, Visa, Royal Bank of Canada and BCE, are all touting their support for various Canadian athletes. But major endorsement deals for individuals are “very few and far between,” McIntyre said. “I've seen deals that bring maybe 50 to 100 per cent more dollars to the winter athletes.”

At the best of times, “it's a challenge for a lot of the summer Olympians,” said agent Elliott Kerr, the president of Landmark Sport Group. “How many people are kayakers? How many are trampolinists? All the summer disciplines are difficult to identify with.”

And then the Vancouver factor gets thrown into the equation.

“They've only got so much money,” Kerr said of corporate marketers. “And I suspect that if they had a chance to increase budgets, they would be spending more in Vancouver, not splitting it.”

But winning a second gold would certainly help kayaker Adam van Koeverden.

“A lot of successful Olympians haven't cashed in to the degree they should have,” Kerr said. “But making it happen in another Olympiad helps that process.”