There are around 30 barebow archers in Russia today. But why are the numbers so low compared with the US or Europe? To help me explore in more detail, I have interviewed a number of archers from the barebow community, and have spoken to leading coaches from the former USSR in Russia, Ukraine and Belarus. I aim to highlight what the archers and coaches themselves talk about, to give a good overview of the community. It was particularly interesting for me to find out what the coaches with a long-standing tradition and respect for Olympic recurve think of barebow and its specificities: where do they place it on the archery scene today and where do they see it in the future? I questioned barebow’s place in the ‘traditional’ archery scene, and looked at a wider sporting culture, including the legacy the USSR has left on the sport.