Things were going well for Australian triathlete Mirinda Carfrae as she competed in a bike race from the confines of her home in Boulder, Colorado.

Suddenly, Carfrae, a former triathlon world champion, was no longer second in the inaugural Ironman VR Pro Challenge women’s race, which was being broadcast live on Facebook. The culprit? She believed that she hadn’t firmly plugged into the wall outlet.

Alas, the explanation for the electrical failure lay elsewhere.

Her husband, triathlete Tim O’Donnell, confessed that he had tripped over the cord when he entered the room and moved behind her to hold up cards for the camera.

“He decided to bring my trophies in here as motivation and when he walked around the back he kicked out the plug,” she said with a laugh on her Instagram story. “What an idiot!”

She kept pedalling in the 55-mile race anyway and later held up a sign that read, “It’s Tim’s fault.”

Carfrae vowed that she won’t be seeking retribution.

“Tim is racing next weekend and I won’t pull his cord out,” she said.

Jocelyn McCauley of the US won the race, with Canada’s Angela Naeth and Jeanni Seymour finishing second and third, respectively.