Race to hurdle obstacles, principally a sport (6)

I believe the answer is:

pelota

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'a sport' is the definition.
(pelota is a kind of sport)

I don't understand how the rest of the clue works.

(Other definitions for pelota that I've seen before include "Spanish game played with a ball and wickerwork racket" , "Basque ball-game" , "Basque sport" , "SPORT/GAME" , "Spanish game at Opel" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.

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