Really? You really think so?
Go ask Chris Dufficy what Forum/Foursquare distribution did for him. I think you'll get a different story from him.
Go ask Lance Armstrong who paid his fucking medical bills when he had what everyone thought was terminal cancer, after he sold his porsche, his house, and pretty much every thing he owned, after most of his euro sponsors dropped him. The answer: Oakley. Sure, they had him on health insurance, but the head @ Oakley had to threaten to drop their insurance company (when you're a big account, that's a big deal) so that it would cover Lance.
Loyalty always pays off. Your athletes are the guys who build your brand, your company, your image. They're the guys/girls who get your shit onto the podium at X, into hammer segments in movies, and into photos in magazines. They're the people talking to kids on the hill, getting them stoked, and getting them to ride harder, longer. They're role models (for better or worse) to tons of kids everywhere.
A company that sticks by a seriously injured athlete is ALWAYS better off in the long run, costs be damned.