The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 4 plus 2 plus 6 letter word TOUR DE FRANCE
I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
T
O
U
R
D
E
F
R
A
N
C
E
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "lengthy sporting event" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case lengthy sporting event = tour de france.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.