A high-profile sports manager has estimated Australian swimmer Cate Campbell’s failure to bring home individual gold in Rio may have lost her $1 million.

James Henderson, whose talent agency Dynamic Sports Entertainment Group represents cricket legend Ricky Ponting and AFL coach Alistair Clarkson, said that conservative figure would have been much higher 15 years ago.

“Olympians have lost that gloss [for sponsors],” he told The New Daily.

On the other end of the spectrum, he said shock gold medal winner Kyle Chalmers had a lot to prove before he was showered in sponsor money.

Dr Adam Karg, Senior Lecturer in Sports Management at Deakin University, agreed that Campbell’s “greatest choke in Olympic history” (her words) – would likely cost her more than just glory.

Campbell’s missing gold

A media darling in the lead-up to the games, Cate Campbell shocked Australia after bombing out in the 50 metre and 100 metre freestyle events.

After the disappointing performances, the freestyler admitted to media she was considering retiring from the sport, but later confirmed she would continue on to compete in 2020.

Craig Mitchell, Associate Director in Sports, Events and Venues at Ernst and Young, said the way athletes carried themselves in both success and defeat was crucial.

“There’s more to the value of sponsorship than just performance – personality is a big factor,” he said.

He listed family values, work ethic and gratitude as other important attributes for a marketable athlete.

Dr Karg said Campbell’s open admission that she cracked under pressure could hurt her marketability.

“Athletes are known for being totally in control, so to come out and say we didn’t deal with the pressure is dangerous,” he said.

Sports manager Mr Henderson said 18-year-old Kyle Chalmers’ surprise win in the 100 metre freestyle was unlikely to cement him lucrative sponsorship deals either, as he was not yet a known quantity.

“Is he going to stay at the top? Does he even stand out? We don’t know yet,” he said.

It’s unlikely either swimmer will follow the footsteps of Stephanie Rice, who just days after winning triple gold in Beijing, signed an $800,000 deal with Channel Seven.

But since 2008 swimming has struggled through an era of doping scandals that damaged the entire Olympic movement, while closer to home, Australian swimmers disappointed at the London Olympics.

As a result, we’re not seeing the same money spent in the grand era of Grant Hackett, Ian Thorpe, Michael Klim and Susie O’Neill.

Mr Henderson said Olympic athletes were becoming riskier investments for sponsors who were increasingly looking to footballers and even media personalities instead.

“Swimming trials used to be on prime time in Australia, now it’s simply not a sport that cuts through on TV.”

It’s bad news for Australian swimmers, most of whom live under the minimum wage.

Mr Henderson said Australia’s basketballers were the most likely to catch the eyes of sponsors given their performance in Rio thus far.

He pointed to some of the team’s younger stars such as 25-year-old Matthew Dellevadova, who starred in the team’s quarter final win over Lithuania.

“The problem is, most of those Australians are making so much money in the US they would laugh at the sponsorship deals offered over here,” he said.

There is some good news for athletes whose medals don’t bring them endorsements.

The AOC runs the Adidas Medal Incentive Fund, which gives one-off payments to athletes who win medals at a major international tournament, such as a world championship.

In 2015, athletes received $20,000 for a gold medal, $13,400 for silver and $10,000 for bronze.