fall at the final hurdle
Fail near finish
To fall at the final hurdle is to fail at the last stage of a long effort, just before success would have been achieved.
The expression comes from track and field, where a runner might clear every obstacle in a race only to stumble at the very last one.
It emphasizes the particular sting of near-success: They led the whole tournament but fell at the final hurdle in the championship match.
- home stretchConcluding phase of effort
- pitfallHidden danger or drawback
- collapseSudden structural failure
- frustrationDispleasure from blocked efforts
- struggleLabored effort against resistance
race · stumbling block · defeat · so close yet so far · almost there · near miss · misstep · shortcoming · blunder · downfall · regret · championship · contest · discouragement · setback · trial · challenge · roadblock
fall at the final hurdlego the distance
Persist to completion
see it through · get over the line · finish strong · seal the deal · win the day
fall at the final hurdledead on arrival
Lifeless upon reaching destination
fallen, falling, final, finally, finale, finality, finals, hurdle, hurdles