Contrary to popular belief, victors in the ancient Greek Olympic Games

Contrary to popular belief, victors in the ancient Greek Olympic Games received cash prizes in addition to their laurel wreaths.

(A) Contrary to

(B) In contrast with

(C) Opposite of

(D) Unlike

(E) In spite of


I will try to explain ..

IN CONTRAST TO
Use "in contrast to" to compare the differences between two similar things.

E.g
In contrast to the difficulties of controlling CO2, other kinds of greenhouse gases can already be captured or eliminated using existing technologies.

CONTRARY TO
Use the preposition "contrary to" to emphasize that something is true, even though it is the opposite of what other people think. In academic writing, "contrary to" tends to occur with words meaning beliefs or expectations. The main clause that comes after this preposition usually expresses a negative evaluation or contains a negative form (no, not, never).

I hope above explanation clarifies.... let me know if you need anymore clarification