The 3rd FIL Natural Track Luge European Championship took place from February 9th to 11th, 1973 in Taisten , Italy . As in the first two European championships, the title in the single-seater competition went to Austria again this year, while Italy won the double-seater competition for the second time.
At the third natural track luge European championship, the gold medal in the men's singles went to Austria for the third time. As in the first European championship in 1970, Ernst Stangl was also European champion this year . After only Austrians had stood on the podium at the first two European Championships, the second place for Josef Trojer went to Italy for the first time in the men's singles. Third place went to the Austrian Engelbert Fuchs . The defending champion Anton Obernosterer took fourth place.
As in the last European Championship in 1971, only Austrians were in the medal ranks in the women's single-seater competition. Elfriede Pirkmann won the race ahead of Berta Pichler and Martha Ruech . While Pirkmann won medals in the following years and was European champion again in 1978, it was their only European Championship medal for Pichler and Ruech.
Harald Steyrer, Herbert Wurzer, Egon Theiner: 50 years of FIL 1957–2007. The history of the International Luge Federation in three volumes . tapeII . Egoth Verlag, Vienna 2007, ISBN 978-3-902480-46-0 , p.315 .