Born in Bordeaux, Llado made her senior international debut at the 1996 IAAF World Cross Country Championships, where she came 67th in the senior race. She made her first impact in 1997 when she was the surprise gold medallist at the 1997 European Cross Country Championships, seeing off the more favoured Elena Fidatov and Olivera Jevtic by a margin of more than ten seconds. She also led the French women's team to the top of the team podium.