Hours before the Massachusetts Gaming Commission convened Friday for a meeting to discuss amended sports betting regulations, MGC Chair Cathy Judd-Stein listened to a local Boston news segment on a burgeoning young gymnast.

The segment focused on how the gymnast uses social media to promote her brand, information that Judd-Stein made use of for the commission’s discussion of sports betting endorsements by young athletes. The MGC met last week prepared to discuss a proposed regulation that would have prohibited professional athletes under the age of 21 from doing commercial endorsements for sportsbooks. At the meeting, the commissioners amended language to create a carve-out allowing endorsements by certain pro athletes.

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Under the new language, adopted after a lively debate, professional athletes between the ages of 18 and 20 will be exempt from the restriction. Commissioners Nakisha Skinner and Eileen O’Brien had expressed concern about the possibility of an athlete under 18 endorsing a sportsbook in a commercial in Massachusetts. Another commissioner, Jordan Maynard, noted LeBron James’ massive branding power when he entered the NBA in 2003 as a teenager. In the end, the five commissioners struck a compromise by unanimously approving the carve-out for 18-to-20-year-olds.

The MGC could opt to take up the issue again after a meeting planned Monday with a group dubbed The Players’ Association, featuring representatives from the NFLPA, NBAPA, MLBPA, NHLPA, and MLSPA. The commission would like to receive feedback from the players’ unions before the regulation is filed with the Massachusetts Secretary of State next week.

The amended language does not consider prominent Olympic athletes under the age of 18. For instance, at age 16, Simone Biles won the all-around title at the 2013 USA Gymnastics National Championships. At the 2012 London Summer Olympics, swimmer Katie Ledecky, then 15, won a gold medal while setting a U.S. record in the 800-meter freestyle. Under Massachusetts rules, bettors could wager on a 15-year-old swimmer in the Olympics, even though the swimmer is not allowed to endorse a sportsbook.

The MGC also tabled a vote on approving an expansive sports wagering catalog until next Tuesday’s meeting. A memo posted by the commission ahead of the meeting indicated certain wagers it might deny based on staff recommendations.

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