Sports In Space

Has anyone ever commented on this aspect of Poul Anderson's Technic History before?

When Flandry and Chives ride a missile through space (see Spacemen And Cowboys), we are told that:

"The 'broomstick' you rode when playing comet polo was not totally unlike this steed...."
-Poul Anderson, A Stone In Heaven IN Anderson, Flandry's Legacy (Riverdale, NY, 2012), pp. 1-188 AT XIII, p. 174.

OK. Some reasonable inferences:

there is a game called "comet polo";
it is played in space;
Flandry plays it.

Is such a game feasible? Even to begin to play the game would be a major operation, not just like walking out onto a sports field, and it is odd that we read only this single casual reference to it.

When Flandry meets the rebel, Magnusson, they discuss their contrasting experiences of Merseians. Magnusson has met the greenskins/gatortails as enemies, negotiators or colleagues whereas Flandry's knowledge of them is more behind-the-scenes. He says that Magnusson's experience is:

"'...like being a player on one of two meteor ball teams. I am acquainted with the owners of the clubs.'"
-The Game Of Empire, CHAPTER EIGHTEEN, p. 397.

OK: not only "comet polo" but also "meteor ball"? How can you hit a ball around in space?

(Years ago, DC Comics tried to combine science fiction and sports fiction. See Strange Sports Stories.)