Chris Froome underwent surgery on Friday to remove a metal plate in his hip and screws in his elbow, commenting that the surgery was "perfect."

Chris Froome, a four-time Tour de France winner, had the implants fitted five months ago after breaking his hip, elbow, femur, sternum, and vertebrae in a warm-up crash at the Criterium du Dauphiné in June.

The metal rod in the lower part of the femur will remain in place for the rest of his life, but the plate stabilizing his right hip and the screws holding his right elbow in place were scheduled for removal in early November.

The surgery took place Friday morning at Saint-Etienne University Hospital in Frum's native France.

"A few fittings in my hip and elbow were removed," Froome wrote on social media, along with a photo of himself in a hospital bed. 'Feeling groggy but everything was perfect.'

The surgery was an important step in Froome's recovery and rehabilitation from his crash at the Dauphiné. He recently competed in a 3km time trial exhibition at the Saitama Criterium, and although he is still riding his bike, he told Cycling News that there is no guarantee that he will be able to return to his previous level.

In Japan, Froome was able to run but walked with a limp. He explained that a hip plate had pinched his tendon, causing pain, and he hoped that once it was removed he would be able to walk normally. He said his femur fracture had healed "amazingly well."

Froome is aiming to compete in the 2020 Tour de France and win his fifth title, the most in history.

"I need a few weeks of rest after the surgery, but I think I will be able to train normally again in December. I hope to be back racing by at least February and then we'll take it from there," Froome told Cycling News in Japan.

"There are no guarantees in a process like this in sports, and in life in general, but if I can get back to racing by February, ....... I don't know what level that would be, but I would like to be back racing the Tour de France within four months and be back to my normal self. That's my goal, and until I find some reason to believe that's not possible, that's what I'm aiming for."