Arjun Watane, a junior computer science major, is an athlete and pianist with aspirations of becoming a physician. He is also one of just 20 students being recognized with UCF's most significant honor, the Order of Pegasus award.

Watane is most comfortable on the UCF tennis courts. He took up tennis when his father put a racket in his hands around age 5.

“I played my first tournament when I was 7 years old, and made it all the way to the finals,” Watane said. “My dad was so happy I had made it, he took me to Burger King after the semi-finals. I ate a big meal and drank a lot of Coke. My stomach hurt so bad afterward that I had to forfeit the finals."

Through years of practice and participation in tournaments, he was able to draw the attention …show more content…
Watane was first encouraged to apply to the Order of Pegasus award in his sophomore year by his athletic advisor, Margaret Dann.

"Arjun has immersed himself in as many opportunities as possible to allow himself to have a well-rounded experience at UCF,” Dann said. “He continues to challenge himself and others to do better in the classroom, on the tennis court, and within the community.”

Because the award is only available for upperclassmen, Watane had to wait a year before applying. By the time he was able to apply, the College of Engineering and Computer Science and many others were backing him as well.

Thanks to their support he was one of the students UCF chose to honor with the Order of Pegasus this year.

“Arjun earned the highest honor at UCF due to the way his family raised him and his own personal vision, ambition, passion and self-belief,” said Brandon Stokes, an assistant coach for the UCF tennis team. “The greatest quality that put Arjun in position to earn this award is his resilient spirit. The young man never gives up. Arjun’s perspective of keep moving forward, being proactive and finding another solution keeps him on the right