We present spectroscopic observations of the host galaxy of the \gamma -ray burst ( GRB ) 980703 .
Several emission and absorption features are detected , making the redshift , z = 0.966 , completely unambiguous .
This is only the third known redshift for a GRB host .
The implied isotropic \gamma -ray energy release from the burst is in excess of 10 ^ { 53 } erg , for a reasonable choice of cosmological parameters .
The spectroscopic properties of the host galaxy are typical for a star formation powered object .
Using the observed value of the Balmer decrement , we derived the extinction in the galaxy ’ s restframe , A _ { V } \approx 0.3 \pm 0.3 mag .
Using three different star formation rate indicators , we estimate SFR \approx 10 ~ { } M _ { \odot } ~ { } { yr } ^ { -1 } , or higher , depending on the extinction , with a lower limit of SFR > 7 ~ { } M _ { \odot } ~ { } { yr } ^ { -1 } .
This is the highest value of the star formation rate measured for a GRB galaxy so far , and it gives some support to the idea that GRBs are closely related to massive star formation .