Things took a turn with just two laps to go, when the Toyko silver medalist appeared to trip over the hurdle.
Until his fall, Girma appeared to be in contention for a medal in the final.
Morocco’s Soufiane El Bakkali defended his title in men’s steeplechase, finishing in 8 minutes, 6.05 seconds for a .36-second win over America’s Kenneth Rooks.
Rooks had the lead heading into the homestretch and was looking to pull off a massive upset, but El Bakkali overtook him.
Rooks still beat his personal best by almost 9 seconds to capture the second silver over three Olympics in the event for America.
