Evert Gunnarsson first represented Sweden in rowing at the Olympics in 1948 in London, when he and Bernt Torberntsson were eliminated in the round one repêchage of the coxless pairs. The duo had much better luck the following year at the World Championships, when they won the gold medal. They tried their luck again at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics, but this time they were eliminated in the semi-finals repêchage. Following this, Gunnarsson transitioned to larger crews and, at the 1955 European Championships, took silver in both the coxed fours and the eights. He also competed in those events at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics, just missing the podium in fourth in the eights, but capturing silver in the coxed fours with Olle Larsson, Gösta Eriksson, Ivar Aronsson, and Bertil Göransson. Gunnarsson was an eight-time gold medalist at the Nordic Championships and, domestically, won 25 Swedish titles. He later earned an additional four gold medals at the masters’ level.